Extra Credit Deadline

If you are doing a scene from "451" or another Bradbury story for extra credit, you must adhere to the following deadlines.

By Friday: You must give me a list of your group members, the roles and responsibilities of each member, and the scene you will be doing. This information must be given to me in writing.

By Monday: a typed script will be due. Your script should include all of the dialogue as well as stage direction (and narration if necessary). Include the list of "credits" for your scene (writer, director, actors)

Once I have this information, I will arrange for a performance date.

Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity. Create a group that will help you reach your goal.

Homework

You MUST have your draft of your banned book essay with you tomorrow. We will begin the revision process, so you will not be able to revise your draft if you don't have it with you. Be prepared!

Banned Book Essay: First Draft Due Monday

Essay Assignment: “Banned in the U.S.A.”

Over the past few weeks, we have been following the journey of Guy Montag, a fireman in a world where books are illegal. Although Fahrenheit 451 is a work of fiction, book burning and book banning are very real. We have read a bit in class about actual cases of banned or challenged books, and last week you were asked to find two news articles on the topic. You will be using the information from those articles to help write an essay on book banning.

Your essay should include an introduction, body, and conclusion.

Your introduction: In a short paragraph, introduce the topic of book banning. You can open your essay by mentioning the idea of book banning in Fahrenheit 451, and then transition into mentioning the real world history of book banning. Your thesis statement will basically be a claim that book banning or the censorship of books is a reality in our world.

The Body: The body of your essay should include  2-4 paragraphs discussing two specific examples of books that have been banned. For each example, explain the basic “5 W’s” and details of the situation.  This information should come from your articles. Include quotes from your articles in your body.

Conclusion: In your closing paragraph, restate your thesis statement and wrap up your claim/argument.

A first draft of this essay will be due on Monday. We will work on revising it during the week (next week) in class.  A rubric will be provided before the final draft is due.

Sample Body paragraph (These details are made-up. Don’t copy them.)

     On example of real-life book banning took place in Cleveland, Ohio in 2010. Upset over some of the violence and reckless teenage behavior in S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, a parent group from Bentley Middle School protested against the book’s use and sought to have it removed from the school library. According to the Cleveland Times article “Parents Protest Over Violence in Books”, a group nearly 50 parents marched into the school and demanded that The Outsiders and other violent books be removed from the school’s required reading list. Although the protest was initially successful, a lawsuit filed by another parent group eventually resulted in the books being returned to the shelves. “This is America,” said parent Gilbert Reyes. “Banning books is the most un-American thing I can think of.”

Extra Credit Opportunity: Group Play Project

EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY: Ray Bradbury Theatre

For this assignment, we will be combining the acting and directing skills we worked on with Adam this year and our current unit on author Ray Bradbury.  The assignment is as follows:

You will work with a group to turn a scene from Fahrenheit 451 (or one of the Bradbury short stories we have read) into a play. You will need to rehearse your play and perform it in front of the class. This is an optional assignment, but if you need to raise your grade to pass this class, consider it mandatory. Here is what you must do:

Form a group to work with. The size of your group will depend on the number of jobs involved in your production. For example, a scene with 3 actors and a director should have 4 members. Choose your groups wisely. Work with people who will help you succeed.

Choose a scene to work on. No two groups will be permitted to work on the same scene. I must approve your scene before you begin working on it.

Transform the section of the book or story into a script. Your script should look like a play: dialogue, stage directions, etc.  Final copy must be typed and will be collected and counted towards your grade.

Rehearse: Since the whole class will not be involved in this, I will not be giving up much class time to work on it. You must find time to rehearse on your own. When available, I will allow my room to be used for rehearsals during the lunch period. 

I will be speaking to Adam about having him return for one more day. I will let you know when he will be coming. You should have your scene worked out by then so that you can get some of his expert input to guide you.

Perform: Your performance must be done (as Adam says) “off book” (no scripts).

Your project will be graded on the following: your script, your performance, your preparation and effort.

Dates and deadlines are all T.B.D.

Deadline Change

News articles (2) on banned or challenged books are now due on Monday.

Propaganda Posters.

Your Fahrenheit 451 propaganda posters are due tomorrow for 802 and 831. Those who were testing this week (in 802) will have an extended deadline. 821 posters are due on Monday.

Your poster should be created as if it were to exist in the 451 world. You should use propaganda techniques (review the handout) to persuade people not to read. On a separate sheet of paper with your heading, write a paragraph explaining your poster. Your paragraph should include a description of your poster, an explanation of which techniques you used, and an explanation as to why you chose those techniques. Do your best!

Homework (Due Thursday) 802 & 831

Search the web to find two news articles about books being banned, challenged, or burned. Review the list of frequently challenged books you were given in class. You can search for stories in these titles if you would like. You should be brining in copies of news articles, not lists of books. You will end up using these articles as sources for a research based essay. Be sure to bring them in on Thursday.