Kyle's Blog

In Into the Wild, Krakauer uses many literary devices that enhance the reader’s experience. Two of the devices he uses frequently and effectively are irony and conflict. Below are a few examples of each. Irony:             The very first paragraph of the book explains how in 1992, a young man hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness and was found dead four months later. The irony here is that throughout the entire story, Chris McCandless believes (or is portrayed that way) that he will survive all of his adventures. But the very first thing the reader learns is that McCandless unfortunately does not survive and is a great example of situational irony.             Another small example of irony is the fact that McCandless is presumed to have succumbed to starvation. While the nature of his death is a highly debated question, Krakauer reaches the conclusion tha...

Two years he walks the earth. No phone, no pool, no pets, no cigarettes. Ultimate freedom. An extremist. An aesthetic voyager whose home is the road. Escaped from Atlanta. Thou shalt not return, ‘cause “the West is best.” And now after two rambling years comes the final and greatest adventure. The climactic battle to kill the false being within and victoriously conclude the spiritual pilgrimage. Ten days and night of freight trains and hitchhiking bring him to the Great White North. No longer to be poisoned by civilization he flees, and walks alone upon the land to become lost in the wild.                  --Alexander Supertramp, May 1992.             I chose this quote for a number of reasons. It comes at a major point in the story when McCandless is entering ‘the Great White North’ and highlights both his journey so far and his excitement f...

4/26 Into the Wild blog             The book I chose for this week is Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. For those that do not know,  Into the Wild is the true story of Christopher McCandless, a graduate of Emory College who decides to give up his all communications with his family, donate all his money to charity, and hitchhike across the Western United States. He adopts an alias, has a few run-ins with the law, and eventually makes it to Alaska and spends more than 100 days in the Alaskan wilderness. Throughout the book, we see that McCandless has a drive to reinvent his life and live on his own terms. He is greatly influenced by Thoreau, Emerson, London and other “self-made,” transcendentalist-type writers and his diary is full of quotes from them. The book is the ultimate struggle of man versus nature and McCandless’s efforts to live simply and embody the ideals of his favorite transcendentalist writers.   ...

Teacher: Kyle Morrill Novel: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini Grade: 11 Lesson: Socratic Circle – Chapters 1-5 Material needed: ·          Class set of The Kite Runner ·          Students’ notes ·          Individual desks Learning objectives: ·          Students will learn to analyze literature by citing text and engage in discussion with peers ·          Student will strengthen their understanding of literary terms like suspense, atmosphere/mood, and plot/setting. NOTE: Due to the graphic nature of some parts of the novel, teacher must get approval before reading The Kite Runner . Procedure: ·          Divide students into two groups. Arrange the desks such that one group of students forms the inner ring and the...

Lesson 1  Teacher: Kyle Morrill Novel: The Outsiders  by S.E. Hinton Lesson: #TheOutsiders Grade: 7 Timeframe: Ongoing while class reads The Outsiders Materials needed: ·          Internet access: either smartphone or computer with access to Twitter ·          Class set of The Outsiders Learning Objective: ·          Students will learn how to use social media (Twitter) responsibly ·          Students will engage in thoughtful questioning and answering techniques to gain a deeper understanding of the novel. NOTE: Social media use in school is a contentious issue. Check with your administrator or district for clearance before using this lesson. Procedure: ·          1.  Before beginning a class reading of The Outsiders , discuss appropriate and responsi...

Discussion Strategies Activities             For the first activity, I decided to create a list of discussion questions for Chapters 1-5 of Hatchet . These would be used in the “Pose-Pause-Pounce-Bounce” technique to stimulate a conversation about the early parts of the book. 1.       Pre-reading: If you were stuck on a deserted island, what one item would you bring and why? 2.         Chapter One: What do you think “The Secret” is? 3.       Chapter Two: Brian says he has two options; wait to run out of fuel or increase his speed and crash sooner. What are the advantages/disadvantages of each? Does he have any other options? 4.       Chapter Three: Have you ever had a near death experience? 5.       Chapter Four: Why do you think the author starts Chapter 4 with Brian’s memory/flashback? 6. ...

Discussion Strategies Blog THUNKING The first discussion strategy I researched is “thunking.” This strategy uses very simple questions that are designed to spark higher order thinking. They can be connected to a specific topic, or simply to stimulate an interesting and engaging discussion. One thunk in particular that I found from the provided website asked the following question: “If you steal something for a friend in need, are you still breaking the law?” This got me thinking about the book I read for last week’s assignment, Shiloh . One of the main themes of the book is right versus wrong. The main character, Marty, struggles with the conflict of keeping the dog Shiloh to protect him or abiding by the law and giving Shiloh back to his abusive owner, Judd Travers. It brings up unlimited topics about right/wrong and good/evil. My freshman year of college I took a college writing course title “The Search for Right and Wrong.” Our big assignment of the semester was a 20 page r...

CHAPTERS 11-15 Connector “I move my arms off my face after a while and let him rest his paws on my chest, and I’m lying there petting his head and he’s got this happy dog-smile on his face. The breeze is blowing cool air in from the west, and I figure I’m about as happy right then as you can get in your whole life” I am, and will always be, a dog lover. This passage really struck a nerve with me because of the description of the “happy dog-smile.” If there are any other dog lovers out there, you know exactly what the author is talking about. Although they are not actually smiling, the special bond lets us know that they are truly happy. Dogs are the only animals that love you more than they love themselves. I think the enjoyment we get from the companionship of a dog is only a fraction of what the dog experiences. I read a story about a family that had to put their dog down at the age of 10. The parents thought it would be a good idea for their 6 year old son to observ...

CHAPTERS 6-10 Summarizer Marty continues to struggle with his internal dilemma. He is hesitant to bring Shiloh back to his abusive owner, but knows it is the lawful thing to do. But is it the right thing to do? He is constantly questioning himself about this issue. Marty’s friend David Howard comes into the picture. Both parents want to set up a time for their boys to hang out, but Marty doesn’t want to tell David about Shiloh. Instead of waiting for David to come to his house, Marty goes into town to see him. David lives in a big house in Friendly, and he and Marty have a rather uneventful day at David’s house. A few days later, Marty goes out after supper to see Shiloh in the small pen that he built for him. He feeds Shiloh the food he has managed to scrape together and plays with Shiloh for a while. Just as he’s about to head back home, Marty looks up to see his mom standing next to the pen watching him. His secret is out. Marty explains the whole situation and they agree...

CHAPTERS 1-5 Vocabulary Enricher 1. groveling (p. 13): move on the ground with one's face downward.  Ex. "Dog goes down on his stomach, groveling about in the grass." 2. ford (p. 15): a shallow place in a river/stream to walk or drive across. Ex. "So I always go as far as the ford, where the river spills across the path, and then I head back." 3. loping (p. 20): moving with a bounding/long stride. Ex. "I whistle softly. Shiloh comes loping towards me." 4. froggy (p. 29): scratchy/hoarse. Ex. "'Can you think of a way I could earn myself some money?' I ask him, with this froggy kind of voice that shows you aren't woke up yet." 5. feeble (p. 39): weak, lacking strength. Ex. "It isn't that we're rock-poor; trouble is that Grandma Preston's got real feeble, and she's being cared for by Dad's sister over in Clarksburg." 6. shadbush (p. 42): small tree/shrub of the Rose family. Ex: "Get me...

Welcome to my blog for Week 3 of Literature in the 21st Century! For this assignment, I will be reading/analyzing the book Shiloh  by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. I'm excited to start this literature circle and blogging about what I read. Good luck and have fun everyone! -Kyle