Top Numbered Somethings: Awesome Songs by So-So Artists

Most of my favorite songs are by bands or artists that I also consider to be my favorites. If I were to name my top five favorite songs, they'd probably almost exclusively be by two or three of my top five favorite artists.

Both of those are lists for another day, however. Instead, I was curious about another facet of favorites: songs a person absolutely loves by artists towards which they are completely ambivalent. This is not to say that the artists are in any way bad. In fact, it's very possible that someone could see any of the following musical acts as a huge deal and their personal favorites because they're talented and have storied careers, but that's not the point of this list.

For me, I don't care one way or the other about these artists; they just have songs that hit me where I live. There's one other caveat, too: no one-hit wonders. For some reason, choosing a one-hit wonder (for example, The Proclaimers and their song "(500 Miles) I'm Gonna Be") shouldn't be an option because that's the only thing from them that you could really pick. I figure that this is a list where people could possibly be insulted by the fact that I chose their favorite band but appreciate the fact that I at least really dig one of their songs. Here are my top five in this very specific category:

5. "Don't Look Back in Anger" by Oasis
4. "Halo" by Beyonce
3. "Crooked Teeth" by Death Cab for Cutie
2. "Nine in the Afternoon" by Panic! At the Disco

1. "Story of My Life" by Social Distortion

I provided links to audio samples of the songs if you are not familiar with them, but my tastes in this arena are pretty mainstream. It's not hard to fathom that you've heard them before, but, just in case, you can click on the link and give it a go. Feel free to post your choices in the comments, too.

Frosh
Due to a miscommunication issue, I was caught by surprise by the registration assembly on Monday. It threw me off my plan for the week, but you were able to figure out your classes for next year. Sophomore year is a tough one because so much of your schedule is picked out for you and there's not too much in the way of choice. My only advice is to power through, make the best of it and know that the high school world is your oyster during your junior and senior year should you stay on track with your given courses.

We began act two of Romeo & Juliet on Tuesday and continued in that vein through Wednesday, allowing us to cover almost the entire balcony scene. While it's considered by the world at large to be the most famous scene in all of Shakespeare as well as romantic as all get out, we instead focused on how creepy it is that this dude was listening to the object of his affections inner-most thoughts right after they met. Romeo's actions would qualify him for stalker status by today's standards, and he's pretty lucky that Juliet is as taken with him as she is at that point.

Despite some technical difficulties on Thursday, we managed to get through two different versions of the balcony scene for media analysis. The media analysis sheet is due, appropriately enough, on Monday, February 14. It's Valentine's Day, you see.

Seniors
Macbeth's act four is done and out of the way as we covered it for the entire week. While it's the shortest act in the entire play, leading many to believe that it's the one that has been most ravaged by the fact that an original Shakespearian script has never been found, it does contain one of the longest scenes. Malcolm and Macduff really hash it out, giving us a clear view of Malcolm and his claims to have never lied before that moment (forcing us to ask if he's even telling the truth with that statement) and Macduff making the case for his dogged patriotism at the expense of the lives of his family members.

More importantly, we get Macbeth's second encounter with the witches, which is itself up for debate. Did Macbeth really find them? If so, how does Lennox and whoever else is there at the end not see them? Are they truly supernatural and fantastical or did Macbeth's insomnia-induced brain conjure them up? These are the kinds of ideas you could really explore pretty deeply in your dichotomy paragraph that is due Monday, February 14.

Reason 6: That Flipper show with Jessica Alba was no good.

The Oatmeal, while sometimes using not-appropriate-for-school language, provides a look at many of our literary terms in funny and useful ways. English topics he's tackled so far include irony, proper use of the word literally, i.e. and how to use it correctly, commonly misspelled words, and how to utilize an apostrophe. Again, I have to reiterate that the site also tackles some seriously taboo subjects (like dolphin punching but also other, more serious topics) and uses "foul" language, but it's all for the sake of getting a laugh. Check it out if everyone at home is cool with that sort of thing.

Frosh
Today and Tuesday, we read Cask of Amontillado while focusing on characterizing Montresor. You're finding quotes dealing with the five categories (Appearance, What Fortunato says, What Montresor says, Montresor's actions, and Montresor's thoughts) and then adding your inferences about him. Basically, you're asking yourself "What does this quote say about Montresor as a character/person?" Finally, determine if the quote you used qualifies as direct or indirect characterization. This assignment will be due tomorrow, September 30.


Seniors
Tuesday, you received the guidelines for your Persuasion Portfolio. Remember that assignments one, two and four are group assignments, meaning that the group only needs one copy of the work for the entire group. Meanwhile, assignment three is an individual one, so that means that each group member needs to have their own copy of it. The whole portfolio is due Tuesday, October 5. Hopefully, both classes will make better use of the work day they have tomorrow than they did today. 

...in which I vent.

Make no mistake, I enjoy writing this blog. It's a cathartic attempt at tracking what I do in a way that will be helpful to me in the future. At the same time, I wouldn't do this if I didn't think it was helpful to students. This is a two-way street, though, folks. In attempting to create a dialogue, I feel like I'm shouting at nothing, screaming into a void where sound is never returned my way.

If someone feels uncomfortable speaking in class, this should be the avenue to make your voice heard. A few people have made some jokes in class that I'm desperate for blog attention, but that's only partially true; ideally, I would like to see some activity on here that hasn't come as a result of bonus point bribes from yours truly. And then...THEN! I didn't even get one person making a single attempt at tackling a 15 point bonus opportunity despite having the window open for almost a week.

The blog will continue so ignore my existential online crisis. Getting more than the four people who have already made their voices heard to speak up would be ideal, though.

Frosh
Wednesday, you took a quiz on The Most Dangerous Game, worked on your map for the story of the same name and then took some notes on the Elements of Character.

Thursday, we continued taking notes on the Elements of Character. I need to revisit some of these notes and streamline them because some of the slides are very redundant. Your focus should be on knowing the difference between three pairs of ideas: direct and indirect characterization; static and dynamic characters; and flat and round characters. If you can demonstrate the difference between those three pairs of ideas, then we'll be cool.

Friday, we moved forward.

Today, we're going to finish the character notes and begin reading the Cask of Amontillado. You'll be using an inference chart that you'll create on a sheet of paper to characterize Montresor. The chart has five categories: Appearance, What Fortunato says, What Montresor says, Montresor's actions, and Montresor's thoughts. You'll find a quote for each of these categories and then make an inference about the character based on the quote. Finally, you'll state whether the quote qualifies as direct or indirect characterization in parenthesis after your inference.

Seniors
Discussing the fallacies seems to have gone well, and many people seemed to have a grasp on them by the time we finished our lesson on Wednesday. We read one of the letters to the editor together as a class, at which point you then began working on finding the fallacies in their reasoning, as well as ethos, pathos and logos arguments.

Thursday was your first writing day for the lit project. You'll take that Timed Writing home and revise it into the most perfect piece of writing you possibly can and turn it in Tuesday, September 28. You also turned in your books for the first annotation check and gave me your first Article Selection assignment.

Friday, you received more time to work on the Op-Ed piece assignment and received a copy of my comment key. Sixth period had a few more questions about the comment key, so they received the weekend to finish off the Op-Ed assignment. Fifth period turned it in at the end of the class.

Today, we'll be watching a documentary presentation of Naomi Klein's book, No Logo. You will be finding one example each of Naomi Klein using a(n) ethos, pathos, and logos argument in attempting to make her point. You'll also find one use of a corporation using a logical fallacy to further its agenda. Explain the fallacy, who uses it and how it's used.

A Night of Progress

First off, check this out: The Brave and the Bold: Mr. T

Alta Loma High School implemented Report Card Night three (or so) years ago in an attempt for parents to conference with teachers about a student's progress in the class up to that point. I can't say I'm all that big a fan of the process. While I enjoy meeting parents, the night feels a bit contentious, since the parents most interested in meeting are the folks who think their student is doing poorly. That's not to say that I didn't meet some fine people who just wanted to introduce themselves, but for the most part, meeting someone who is upset with their student or the student's grade makes for an awkward first meeting.

Having now experienced both, I much prefer the Back to School Night format. It allows me to explain my philosophies about grading and teaching so that parents have an idea going into the year while also capturing the initial excitement of the school year when students, teachers and parents haven't been bogged down with all that life has to throw at them. There's also more urgency for all parents to attend Back to School Night, since the prevailing attitude of parents wanting an explanation from the teacher about a poor grade doesn't exist, so all parents feel a need to attend. Plus, I have never felt that the first six weeks of school is in any way an accurate reflection of a student's performance in a class, especially if the administration is still balancing the schedule up to four weeks into the semester.

Still, despite the sweltering heat in the small gym compared to the relative coolness outside, I enjoyed meeting each and every one of the parents from Report Card Night. It's always nice to put parents to students and faces to names.

Frosh
Monday, we came to a consensus about the climax of The Most Dangerous Game, deciding, despite many different guesses by some, that Rainsford's dive into the water to avoid General Zaroff was the moment filled with the most tension and the ultimate turning point of the story. You then received your mapping assignment where you need to create a map of Ship-Trap Island, noting a minimum of four landmarks supported by quotes from the story and noting Rainsford's journey around the island. This is due Thursday, September 23. Remember that students who would like to earn an A will need to go above and beyond the minimum by including more than four landmarks with accompanying quotes. The map should include color and should follow the plot of the story.

Tuesday was a minimum day due to the aforementioned Report Card Night, and you continued working on the mapping assignment.

My goal is to go over Elements of Character today after you take a brief quiz on the story.

Seniors
We began discussing argumentation terms and common logical fallacies Monday and Tuesday. The goal here is that I want you to be able to argue better and not fall into the usual traps that many people assume are valid when trying to make a point. Even better, if you can identify the use of the fallacies in someone else's argument (even mine), then you'll have a way to shut down your opponent. Who doesn't like being able to do that?

Today, the plan is to finish going over the rest of the fallacies and then read some Op-Ed (opinion/editorial) pieces that commit every fallacy under the sun.

Also, seniors need to be aware that Thursday is a bighugegiganticimportantsuperexcitingcrazy day. Your first Article Selection is due and you need to have the first 20% of your book read and annotated. That day will also have the first timed writing which you'll revise, type and return the following Tuesday.

SENIOR Bonus Time (15 points): We went over identifying logical fallacies in writing today in class. So my challenge to you is to find logical fallacies on the Internet, specifically in news stories. Yahoo, CNN, Huffington Post, Fox News and many local news sources allow readers to leave comments on specific stories. Find a comment that utilizes a fallacy and fill out the following in a comment with your name and period:

1. Headline of the story:
2. Brief (1 to 2 sentences) synopsis of the article: 
3. Comment (copy and paste the whole thing):
4. Logical fallacy employed:
5. Explanation of how the comment qualifies as a logical fallacy (2 sentences minimum, more would be preferable):

Numbers 2, 4, and 5 need to be in complete sentences or else you will earn 0 points. The deadline for submission is Sunday, September 26, at 11:59 PM and the limit is one per student.