Plants in The Hunger Games

From Garden Design magazine, here is an article describing several of the plants prominently mentioned in The Hunger Games.  Several of them have very symbolic meaning in the story, including katniss root, evening primrose, dandelion, and rue.
Botanical Notables: Plants of The Hunger Games

Conciseness

"The goal of concise writing is to use the most effective words. Concise writing does not always have the fewest words, but it always uses the strongest ones."

Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab):  Conciseness

Top 5 Tips to Cut the Clutter  from about Education

1. Reduce long clauses
2. Reduce phrases
3. Avoid empty openers
4. Don't overwork modifiers
5. Avoid redundancies

Writing Concise Sentences from jadaniels

A.Word.A.Day

For vocabulary building sent directly to your inbox daily, you can subscribe to A.Word.A.Day, or just go to the website and peruse the list of words and definitions in the archives.

You'll feel smarter
And rock at Bananagrams.

"Two trucks loaded with thousands of copies of Roget's Thesaurus collided as they left a New York publishing house last Thursday, according to the Associated Press.

Witnesses were aghast, amazed, astonished, astounded, bemused, benumbed, bewildered, confounded, confused, dazed, dazzled, disconcerted, disoriented, dumbstruck, electrified, flabbergasted, horrified, immobilized, incredulous, nonplussed, overwhelmed, paralyzed, perplexed, scared, shocked, startled, stunned, stupified, surprised, taken aback, traumatized, upset. . . ."

 

Vivid Words

My students are using s Composition Notebook to create a glossary of interesting words.  At the beginning of each class I write a vivid, expressive word on the whiteboard, along with its definition.  Students must add an original sentence for the word, and may illustrate the page if desired.  Each word has its own page.

So far, the words we have added to the notebooks are tranquility, diaphanous, scintilla, scintillate, rhapsodic, and lithe. 

 These are some creative pages from my sample notebook:

100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know

100 Words Every College Student Should Know


100 Most Beautiful Words in the English Language

Ailurophile	A cat-lover.
Assemblage	A gathering.
Becoming	Attractive.
Beleaguer	To exhaust with attacks.
Brood	To think alone.
Bucolic	In a lovely rural setting.
Bungalow	A small, cozy cottage.
Chatoyant	Like a cat's eye.
Comely	Attractive.
Conflate	To blend together.
Cynosure	A focal point of admiration.
Dalliance	A brief love affair.
Demesne	Dominion, territory.
Demure	Shy and reserved.
Denouement	The resolution of a mystery.
Desuetude	Disuse.
Desultory	Slow, sluggish.
Diaphanous	Filmy.
Dissemble	Deceive.
Dulcet	Sweet, sugary.
Ebullience	Bubbling enthusiasm.
Effervescent	Bubbly.
Efflorescence	Flowering, blooming.
Elision	Dropping a sound or syllable in a word.
Elixir	A good potion.
Eloquence	Beauty and persuasion in speech.
Embrocation	Rubbing on a lotion.
Emollient	A softener.
Ephemeral	Short-lived.
Epiphany	A sudden revelation.
Erstwhile	At one time, for a time.
Ethereal	Gaseous, invisible but detectable.
Evanescent	Vanishing quickly, lasting a very short time.
Evocative	Suggestive.
Fetching	Pretty.
Felicity	Pleasantness.
Forbearance	Withholding response to provocation.
Fugacious	Fleeting.
Furtive	Shifty, sneaky.
Gambol	To skip or leap about joyfully.
Glamour	Beauty.
Gossamer	The finest piece of thread, a spider's silk
Halcyon	Happy, sunny, care-free.
Harbinger	Messenger with news of the future.
Imbrication	Overlapping and forming a regular pattern.
Imbroglio	An altercation or complicated situation.
Imbue	To infuse, instill.
Incipient	Beginning, in an early stage.
Ineffable	Unutterable, inexpressible.
Ingénue	A naïve young woman.
Inglenook	A cozy nook by the hearth.
Insouciance	Blithe nonchalance.
Inure	To become jaded.
Labyrinthine	Twisting and turning.
Lagniappe	A special kind of gift.
Lagoon	A small gulf or inlet.
Languor	Listlessness, inactivity.
Lassitude	Weariness, listlessness.
Leisure	Free time.
Lilt	To move musically or lively.
Lissome	Slender and graceful.
Lithe	Slender and flexible.
Love	Deep affection.
Mellifluous	Sweet sounding.
Moiety	One of two equal parts.
Mondegreen	A slip of the ear.
Murmurous	Murmuring.
Nemesis	An unconquerable archenemy.
Offing	The sea between the horizon and the offshore.
Onomatopoeia	A word that sounds like its meaning.
Opulent	Lush, luxuriant.
Palimpsest	A manuscript written over earlier ones.
Panacea	A solution for all problems
Panoply	A complete set.
Pastiche	An art work combining materials from various sources.
Penumbra	A half-shadow.
Petrichor	The smell of earth after rain.
Plethora	A large quantity.
Propinquity	An inclination.
Pyrrhic	Successful with heavy losses.
Quintessential	Most essential.
Ratatouille	A spicy French stew.
Ravel	To knit or unknit.
Redolent	Fragrant.
Riparian	By the bank of a stream.
Ripple	A very small wave.
Scintilla	A spark or very small thing.
Sempiternal	Eternal.
Seraglio	Rich, luxurious oriental palace or harem.
Serendipity	Finding something nice while looking for something else.
Summery	Light, delicate or warm and sunny.
Sumptuous	Lush, luxurious.
Surreptitious	Secretive, sneaky.
Susquehanna	A river in Pennsylvania.
Susurrous	Whispering, hissing.
Talisman	A good luck charm.
Tintinnabulation	Tinkling.
Umbrella	Protection from sun or rain.
Untoward	Unseemly, inappropriate.
Vestigial	In trace amounts.
Wafture	Waving.
Wherewithal	The means.
Woebegone	Sorrowful, downcast.

"Sweeten" Your Writing With Sentence Variety

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=9&ved=0CFUQFjAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.edmondschools.net%2FPortals%2F0%2Fdocs%2FHow%2520to%2520Use%2520Sentence%2520Variety%2520in%2520Writing%2520Gr.%25204%2C%25205.ppt&ei=hZAgVOngFM3lsATVuIGoCA&usg=AFQjCNFbrBYBHXZ8myxUV2cyjJchYOMfCw&sig2=uNb8Nu_DIMVxdUGIqxnsug

Paragraphs

Here is the Slideshare presentation we watched today on Paragraphs.

The Paragraph from Alliya Anderson

Writing Journals

I have a class of reluctant writers, so one of my challenges is to encourage regular writing, and also to convince them that writing can be fun and interesting. Enter the Writing Journal.

Actually, I am encouraging a combination Writing/Creative Journal.  My students were instructed to use a bound Composition book such as this for their journal.

 

First each person had to choose a theme for his/her journal. A couple of the boys are doing Sports, one chose Music, another Cartoons.  The assignment is to make 4 entries that somehow relate to the theme each week, and every Monday we'll pass them around so the rest of the class can take a look and see what you have done.  Each entry, which should begin on a new page, must include at least 3 complete sentences, at least one design element (drawing, printed picture, graphic, chart, map, border, or other design ) and the date. 

For inspiration:

Figurative Language

Figurative Language = language used by writers to produce images in readers' minds and to express ideas in fresh, vivid, and imaginative ways

• simile:  a comparison of two things using "like" or "as":  Example: "My legs, arms, torso, underarms, and parts of my eyebrows have been stripped of the stuff, leaving me like a plucked bird, ready for roasting."-- From "The Hunger Games", Chapter 5, Pg. 61.
  
• metaphor: a direct comparison of two different things, where one thing is used to refer to another [without using "like" or "as"] to show that they are similar; Example: ""Katniss, the girl who was on fire.""-- From "The Hunger Games", Chapter 5, Pg. 67.
  
• hyperbole:  extreme exaggeration;  Example: "Attendance is mandatory unless you are on death's door."-- From "The Hunger Games", Chapter 1, Pg. 16.
• personification:  giving human characteristics to non-living things; Example: "We have to stand for a few minutes in the doorway of the train while the cameras gobble up our images, then we're allowed inside and the doors close mercifully behind us.  -- From "The Hunger Games", Chapter 3, Pg. 41.
• alliteration:  repetition of initial consonant sounds; Example: "I noticed him, a boy with blond hair peering out from behind his mother's back.-- From "The Hunger Games", Chapter 2, Pg. 30.
• onomatopoeia: the use of words that sound like what they mean, such as "hiss", "plop", "gurgle", "boom";  Example: "R-i-i-i-p! I grit my teeth as Venia, a woman with aqua hair and gold tattoos above her eyebrows, yanks a strip of fabric from my leg, tearing out the hair beneath it."-- From "The Hunger Games", Chapter 5, Pg. 51

examples from http://thehungergames2012.wikispaces.com/Figurative+Language

Symbolism - Cornucopia

cornucopia

[kawr-nuh-koh-pee-uh, -nyuh-]

noun

1.  Classical Mythology. a horn containing food, drink, etc., in endless supply, said to have been a horn of the goat Amalthaea.

2.  a representation of this horn, used as a symbol of abundance.

3.  an abundant, overflowing supply.

4.  a horn-shaped or conical receptacle or ornament.

 

c.1500, from Late Latin cornucopia, from Latin cornu [horn] copiae [plenty, abundance], "horn of plenty," originally the horn of the goat Amalthea, who nurtured the infant Zeus. See  copious.

 

 

 

 

In The Hunger Games, the Cornucopia is the focal point of the Arena, holding an abundance of weapons, food, water, and other supplies the tributes need for survival, but also becoming the site of an initial "bloodbath" as tributes battle each other for these items.

This is another example of the many references to ancient Greek & Roman mythology and history found throughout the novel, and also an interesting twist on the theme of hunger and deprivation.

Inspired by Literature Circles

In planning for this class, I read a couple of articles about Literature Circles, and decided to incorporate some of those elements into my class, particularly assigned roles.

Literature Circles

Literature Circles for Reluctant High School Readers

I have 7 students in my class, so I came up with 7 roles, and each class they draw a number to determine what their role with be for the next class meeting.

1. Questioner
The Questioner's job is to come up with 5 discussion questions that explore important ideas from the assigned reading , and to the lead the next class discussion.

2.  Diction Detective
The Diction Detective studies the word choice (diction) of the assigned reading and chooses 3 passages or phrases that are especially descriptive, powerful, thought-provoking, funny, or even confusing. He must share why he chose them, why he thinks the author selected them, how they help the author achieve his or her purpose.

3. Illustrator
The Illustrator finds or creates an illustration related to the assigned reading. It can be a drawing, graphic, chart, or map. You can choose to illustrate a scene, character, idea. or symbol.

4. Storyteller
The job of the Storyteller is to choose an interesting or powerful passage from the assigned reading to recite in class.

5. Bridge Builder
The Bridge Builder looks for connections between events in the text and events in history, other literature, or current events.

6. Scripture Spotlight
Scripture Spotlight looks for connections between the text and a Bible story, passage or verse.

7. Summarizer
It is the Summarizer's job to write a summary paragraph for each chapter of the assigned reading, chronologically highlighting major events and ideas.


I make sure everyone gets a different role each week until they have gone through all seven roles once, and then it will be up to the luck of the draw.

Bread and Circuses

" It was Juvenal that coined this system, a mechanism of influential power over the Roman mass[es]. "Panem et Circenses", literally "bread and circuses", was the formula for the well-being of the population, and thus a political strategy. This formula offered a variety of pleasures such as the distribution of food, public baths, gladiators, exotic animals, chariot races, sports competition, and theater representation. It was an efficient instrument in the hand of the Emperors to keep the population peaceful, and at the same time giving them the opportunity to voice themselves in these places of performance."   Capitolium.org/eng/imperatori/circenses.htm


http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2012/03/bread-circuses-the-hunger-games-ancient-rome/

Bread and Circuses: The Hunger Games and Ancient Rome

John M. Cunningham - March 23, 2012

Spartacus, 19th-century illustration. Credit: Photos.com/Jupiter Images

Today marks the much-awaited release of the movie The Hunger Games, based on Suzanne Collins’s enormously popular trilogy of young-adult novels. (You may have seen the film’s stars grace magazine covers well in advance of this week.)
In the books, Collins imagines a dystopian future in which children from each district of the nation of Panem fight to survive a barbaric competition (the Hunger Games) in large part for the entertainment of the all-powerful Capitol, which televises the event. Many critics have noted analogies with the modern fad of reality TV, and there are myriad sci-fi details (hovercrafts, genetically designed creatures) that speculate beyond the present day.
However, the Hunger Games series also has plenty of antecedents in the ancient world, especially Rome. While the books easily stand alone as gripping adventure narratives, these historical resonances (which Collins herself has readily noted) provide deeper insight into some of the series’ embedded themes. They also suggest that there may be no better way to achieve contemporary popularity than to retell stories of the distant past.
In examining the connections of The Hunger Games with ancient history, I’ll take a look first at the sociopolitical context in which the titular Games occur and then (in a separate post) at some of the names Collins chooses for her characters.
The Games
In the backstory of The Hunger Games, modern civilization collapsed at some unspecified point in our future, and the North American nation of Panem emerged from the rubble. Seventy-four years before The Hunger Games begins, the 13 outlying districts of Panem revolted against the oppressive Capitol, but the resistance movement died out after the Capitol’s forces essentially wiped District 13 off the map. The Capitol instituted the annual Hunger Games as a perpetual reminder to the districts of the power it wields over them. Significantly, though, the decadent Capitol is also highly dependent upon the districts, from which it imports large amounts of agricultural and manufacturing products.
That this sociopolitical milieu has certain similarities with ancient Rome may be observed by Britannica’s article on the Roman Republic (the precursor to the Roman Empire):

The Romans organized [their] conquered peoples into provinces—under the control of appointed governors with absolute power over all non-Roman citizens—and stationed troops in each, ready to exercise appropriate force if necessary.

(In Panem, the military police posted in the districts are known as Peacekeepers.)
The article further notes that farmers in Rome proper “were unable to raise crops to compete economically with produce from the provinces” and that “the common people were placated by bread and circuses.”
The phrase “bread and circuses” was coined by the Roman satirist Juvenal in reference to the way the ruling class pacified the commoners by diverting them from contemplating their subjugation. In ancient Rome, the “bread” was distributions of grain, and the “circuses” were public games and other mass spectacles. In interviews, Suzanne Collins has admitted she was directly inspired by this bit of history in creating the world of The Hunger Games. Juvenal’s original Latin phrase, some might recall, is panem et circenses.
As a result, both bread and circuses factor into the dynamics of the Hunger Games themselves. Taking place in an outdoor “arena,” the Games bear a distinct resemblance to the gladiatorial games of ancient Rome, in which slaves and criminals engaged in bloody and sometimes-fatal combat before large crowds of riveted spectators. Those in the outlying districts of Panem watch the Games in a state of tense anticipation, since the home district of the eventual victor (i.e., the Games’ sole survivor) is rewarded with food and other gifts by the Capitol (“bread”). Those in the Capitol, with nothing at stake, watch purely for pleasure (“circuses”).
It’s also worth noting, perhaps, that the adolescents who fulfill their civic duty by competing in the Hunger Games are known as “tributes,” a word used in ancient Rome (“tributa”) to refer to the taxes paid to the central government for protection. What’s more, the word is used in Greek mythology (known throughout the ancient world) to refer to the “seven Athenian youths and seven maidens” who, as a form of punishment, were “sent every ninth year (or, according to another version, every year) to be devoured by the Minotaur.” Indeed, Collins has specifically cited this gruesome tale as precedent for The Hunger Games, in which 12 girls and 12 boys are annually sacrificed for their people’s supposed misdeeds.

Incorporating Multimedia Presentations with Chromecast

When I was planning this class over the summer, I started to find YouTube videos, Prezi and SlideShare presentations, movie clips, etc. that I wanted to use in class.  The problem was the logistics of having 7 teens crowded around a computer monitor or laptop in order to view these things in my living room. I went to my Technology Expert, a.k.a. my son, Eric, and asked if he knew of a way I could project from my computer onto the wall or the TV, and he suggested purchasing a Chromecast device.   This $30 thumb-sized media streaming device plugs into the HDMI port on your TV and lets you project, or "cast" anything from your Chrome browser to the TV.  I can also cast from my Android phone.  ( also works with Android tablets, iPhones, iPads, Mac, Windows, or Chromebook)

It has been working great!  Plus, I now can easily watch Netflix movies on the TV, casting from my phone or computer, since I could never remember all the steps to set it up from the Wii or Xbox.

What Is Point of View?

Dystopia

 The Hunger Games is a futuristic, dystopian, science fiction novel written for young adults. (but enjoyed by young and old alike)

Dystopia = an imaginary place where living conditions are extremely bad, as from deprivation, oppression, or terror.

Theseus and the Minotaur

The Hunger Games was inspired by the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur.  Are you familiar with it?   In order to prevent an attack by the army of King Minos of Crete, the city of Athens agreed to send 14 youth - 7 boys and 7 girls - to Crete every 9 years, where they they would enter the Labyrinth to be eaten by the Minotaur, a half-man, half-beast monster.  King Aegeus's son, Theseus, was outraged and volunteered to go to Crete as one of the tributes and slay the Minotaur, which he did.

The Hunger Games - Interview with author Suzanne Collins

To learn about the author of The Hunger Games and what inspired her to write this novel, we watched this video interview with Suzanne Collins.

Teachers Pay Teachers

I found a great website full or resources for teachers, created by teachers.  Even as a home educator, I have found a lot of interesting and helpful things here.  Some are free downloads, some are to purchase.  I bought a unit study by Tracee Orman for teaching The Hunger Games,  and it includes some really wonderful materials that I am using in class.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Hunger-Games-Unit-Lessons-QA-Tests-Activities-Quiz-Vocab-Maps-Key-59190

Welcome!

 I teach English in my living room.  Oftentimes accompanied by home-baked goodies.  Even kids who don't like reading and writing have a hard time hating English class when it includes cupcakes!






Because my own son struggles in this area, I am determined to find that spark that will stoke even a small fire in these kids who "don't like to read and write".  They are bright, unique, capable, and interesting people. In my living room, we will be getting to know one another and building
relationships and trust  as we dive in and explore and create the written word.   I will be sharing here some of the resources we are using in class and talk about the lessons and materials we are covering. I am excited about this adventure!