Blog Post #4

1.)  Choose a passage from your independent reading book that describes setting and reproduce it on your blog.  Explain how it enhances your reading experience.

2.)  Place your main character in the world you live in today.  How would they fare with all of the pressures and trials of the life that you lead?  How would the main character of your independent reading book handle what is in store for our future?

3.) Comment on a peer's blog post.

Blog Post #3

1.) How do the characters, people, or events in your book relate to characters, people, or events in other books you have read or seen in movies or TV shows? (If your book was made into a movie, you are not allowed to use it for this comparison.) Compare the similarities between the two in a healthy paragraph. Think intertextually. What is the author trying to say?
2.) Read and comment on a friend's blog about their book or movie comparison. Do you know what they are talking about? Does it also relate to your comparison?

Blog Post #2

1.) a. You should be just about half way through your book by now. Write about a character that you love or hate from your independent reading so far. Explain why you feel this way in a few sentences. Be sure to include an example or quote from you book. If this character found $100 on the ground, would they ignore it, turn it in to authorities, or take a little bit for themselves? Why?
1.) b. Find a picture on the internet that could represent something from what you have read so far. Post it on your blog and explain what it is and how it relates to your reading.

2.) Add the gadget "Blog List" to your blog page and configure it so that my posts will be easily accessible.

3.) Read some of your classmates' blog posts and "Follow" a classmate's blog that you are not yet following. (You can find them through my blog, at the very least.)

4.) Comment on one of their posts and add their blog to your "Blog List."

***Please remember that everything should be school appropriate. If you have not completed any of the prior blog assignments, please do those now.

Blog Post #1

Now that you are following my blog, you should be able to easily find any posts that I make here.  This is where I will post assignments for your independent reading.  I will let you know in class when you need to check my blog for an assignment, but it will be up to you to go online, see what the assignment is, and complete it on your own blog.  As always, the more effort I can tell you are putting into your blog, the more inclined I will be to give you credit or extra credit.  Make it your own and have fun.

For your first blog post I would like you to write a healthy paragraph on why you chose the independent reading book that you did.  What did you consider?  The author?  The title?  Is it part of a series or genre you like?  Fancy book cover?

Please post a healthy paragraph on your blog that I can read online. Remember to use "Blog Post #1 as the title.

Independent Reading Blog

I want you to use your blog as the place to post about your independent reading.  I will tell you when and what to write about.  This will be a way for me to keep track of your progress with your independent reading without it taking up too much class time or paper.
If you are not very technically inclined, or do not have access to a computer or internet at home, do not fear!  We will occasionally use class time for reading and blogging.  I strongly recommend that you use this time wisely when it occurs.

Please "follow" this blog as I will be posting assignments and topics for your independent reading.  To follow this blog you must have or create a Google, Yahoo, Twitter, or Net ID account.  Then create a blog using http://www.blogger.com/.  Search for my blog and follow for an easy way to see what your assignment will be.  You will post your responses in your own blog, but I need you to follow my blog so that I can easily find yours.

This is still an experiment.  Work with me to smooth out some of the kinks when they occur.
Your first assignment is to comment on this post to show me that you've made it and are ready to go!
Once you comment here, please create your first post.  Use "Blog Post #1" as the title of your first post.