1. Students were given back their TKAM essays and we briefly discussed a few of the most common errors. These were very well written, some of the best I have seen, so I am very pleased.
2. We had a fairly lengthy discussion about “values”. We started with people listing things “of” value to them but then tried to go deeper and define the concept of personal values and it was made clear that, while we all have them, they are not easily defined or explained. We talked a lot about where our values come from, whether we absorb them from our surroundings or they are directly taught to us. We also talked about the idea that there are exceptions to every rule and this would relate to values and beliefs as well – for every belief you have, you’ll find some exception to it and it is these exceptions that can cause complications in our lives.
3. We read the essay “How Poverty Affects My Kids” and it was interesting to hear how some let out a heavy sigh once we had finished. There were four different journal writing activities given with the story and students were asked to choose one of them and write a page for this Wednesday’s class in response to the reading.
4. I will be away tomorrow but the students will have two periods in the afternoon to use computers in researching their essay topic of their choosing. They can check tomorrow’s blog entry for more information.