All Boys, All Blogged: April 30, 2013

Please meet in the C-22 computer lab today.

Focus: Starting to create your film!

1. Warm-up: Meet Windows Movie Maker!

Can you...

• Import an image?
• Create a text slide
• Import a video?
• Import music?
• Layer narration, music, and images?

2. Finishing your script and making a plan for recording it

3. Starting to gather images and create text slides for your mockumentary

SAVE ALL IMAGES--EVERY SINGLE ONE--ALL NARRATION, MUSIC, THE MOVIE ITSELF, ETC. IN A SINGLE FOLDER, THEN SAVE THAT FOLDER IN AT LEAST TWO PLACES.

KEEP TRACK OF ALL WEBSITES CONSULTED.

HW:
1. Assigned book club reading.
2. Finish your script and get it recorded by this Friday.

All Boys, All Blogged: April 29, 2013

Focus: Developing your mockumentary script and your book club website

Class, Part I


1. Warm-up: Listening to an opening clip from a "real" documentary

What do you notice about the script itself (powerful words and phrases)?

How does the script turn this into a movie about us? In other words, how does it capture human interest?

What ideas can you steal for your mockumentary?

2. Developing the script for your mockumentary

Brief Intermission

Class, Part II

3. Creating websites for your book clubs

Two possible web applications for your website: www.wikispaces.com and Google sites

Criteria for your website:
Remember that this website will be how you share all of your book club work with me.  Your website grade will be your culminating grade for this unit.

    First names of group members (no last names, please).
    Title and author of book club book

You will need separate links/pages within your website for the following items:

1. Statement of purpose: Who are you, and why are you creating this site?
2. Group expectations (created last week)
3. Characterization activity (description of assignment and link to it and the product you created, whether it was a series of brains or a discussion)
4. Setting activity
5. Motif activity
6. Theme activity
7. Book-film comparison

Please e-mail your website link before the end of class.

HW:
1. Assigned book club reading
2. Your big,big task of the week: Finish your script and record your narration by Friday.

All Boys, All Blogged: April 26, 2013

Focus: Developing the script for your mockumentary

Class ends at 8:11 am today (spring assembly).

1. Warm-up: Listening to an opening clip from a "real" documentary

What do you notice about the script itself (powerful words and phrases)?

How does the script turn this into a movie about us? In other words, how does it capture human interest?

What ideas can you steal for your mockumentary?

2. Offering a few thoughts about the script:

It should have a powerful opening and closing.

It needs smooth transitions between years/events.

This is a great place to show off your creative voice; choose your words carefully.

You need to have it written out EXACTLY as it will be narrated.

3. Time to finish your timeline and work on your script.

HW:

1. Finish your timeline before tomorrow morning and make sure it's shared with me.

2. Continue working on your script.

3. Assigned book club reading.

All Boys, All Blogged: April 25, 2013

Focus: Transforming your timeline into a script

1. Warm-up: Listening to the openings from two "real" mock/documentaries:

Example #1: Remember Epic?
Example #2: Supersize Me

Your task: As you listen, describe the opening of each script, typing up powerful words, phrases, and tactics.

2. Finishing your timeline (please be sure to share it with me)

3. Composing a rough draft of your script with a focus on your script's opening

I will walk around and show you the grades you have been receiving so far on your 

mockumentary preparation work.

HW: 
1. Timeline must be finished and shared with me before the weekend.

2. Assigned book film club reading.

All Boys, All Blogged: April 24, 2013

Focus: Exploring characterization in your book-film clubs

1. Warm-up: Thinking about your most memorable characters

2. Quickly overviewing your daily group focus grade (see handout)

3. Meeting with your book clubs to discuss CHARACTERS!

a. Click HERE  for Option #1

b. Click HERE for Option #2

(Feel free to mix and match Options 1 and 2)

4. If time allows, start setting up a website for your book club and e-mail me the address.

HW:
1. Assigned book club reading
2. Continue working on your mockumentary timeline (due before the weekend).

All Boys, All Blogged: April 23, 2013

ACT: Class Ends at 11:53 Today

Focus: Diving into your book film club books

1. Warm-up: Quickly finishing our reading calendars

TURN IN SIGNED PROPOSALS (or grab A Separate Peace and start reading)

2. Reading our books to prepare for tomorrow

Advice from my seniors on group work:

• Don't be THAT guy.
• Delegate the work and make sure each member knows what he's in charge of.
• Try to fix it yourself before going to the teacher.

HW:
1. Assigned book club reading

2. Mockumentary timeline and script (Thursday and Friday will be work days)

All Boys, All Blogged: April 22, 2013

Focus: Setting up expectations for book-film clubs

Please have out your signed book club proposals and book club books.

1. Warm-up: Final banned book presentations

John
Austin
Andrew

2. Warm-up: What would you do if...

2. Establishing in-class and out-of-class expectations for your club; after receiving my approval, please print and sign them.

—Outside of class:

—Work Ethic: How much time should we spend on reading each night?  What do we need to do as we read?  What is our division of labor (writing prompts, discussion questions, activities)?

—Accountability: What happens of some members of our group drop the ball?  Forget their book?  Don’t finish the assigned reading?  How do we prevent ugly situations?  How do we enforce the expectations?

—In class:

—Work Ethic: What are our expectations for discussion? How do we plan to spend class time?

—Accountability: What happens if two of us (or all of us) starting losing our focus?  What happens if the bell rings and we haven’t accomplished everything we were supposed to do?

3. Setting up your reading calendar for the next three weeks (see Google calendar)

4. Creating your Google site and/or wikispace and/or other website for your book club

HW:
1. Assigned book club reading for Wednesday; BRING YOUR BOOK TOMORROW FOR READING TIME.

2. Please be here by 11:25 tomorrow and bring your banned book; you will have a banned book reading day.  If you do not have your signed proposal by tomorrow,  you will be reading A Separate Peace (a school-approved book) for the entire book film club unit.

3. Continue working on your timeline and script for your mockumentary.