Mr. Moshé’s Critically Thinking . . . Are You?

Welcome one and all to the discussion on The Book Without Words by Avi.

Before we begin the discussion, I want to offer you all a chance to get to know the author, his life and work. He is a very interesting individual, and comes from my home town, Brooklyn! So you know he must be special.

I am attempting to contact Avi through his agent (I think) to see about his participation in our online book discussions. I have also mentioned the possibility of having him come visit us here in sunny South Florida. More will be revealed on this soon. For now, though, check out Avi’s official website; cut and paste the address below to get there.

http://www.avi-writer.com/index.html

Hello. Thanks so much to all of you who participated in The Year of the Hangman Book Discussion. I know that I learned a lot from this process, and I hope that you also thought it was a worthwhile experience. I would love to hear your feedback on the project.

Here are some questions for you to consider for feedback. Please offer an answer to as many of the questions below as possible. The more you answer of them the better, and the more thorough your answer the better. Be specific. Be clear. Be kind.

1. What did you like about the project? Be specific.
2. What did you not like about the project? Be specific.
3. If you didn’t post often – why not?
4. What did you think of the questions each week?
5. Would you like to have seen a discussion on a topic from the book that I did not pose? If ‘yes’, then – What would you like to have discussed? Be specific.
6. Did you perfer one big question (like the one for Week 4) or would you rather have choice from multiple questions (like we did in Weeks 1 through 3)?
7. Would you like more interaction with the author?
8. Did you like the additional links to learn more about some of the topics and characters in the novel?
9. Would you like to do a project like this again? Why or why not?

I will be doing this sort of thing again soon with a book called The Book Without Words by Avi. Avi is author of the award winning novel Crispin: The Cross of Lead (Newberry Winner 2003). He has written more than fifty books for various audiences.
Check out the book blog for The Book Without Words at ___To Be Set Up Soon___ . I have some ideas that I think will make this book blog even more interactive so check it out.

Again, please drop me a line at moshej@browardschools.com if you have any comments, suggestions, or questions.

Thanks so much. Please post your response to the above questions to this discussion thread.
Mr. Moshé
Westpine Middle School
Sunrise, Florida

If you have questions for Gary Blackwood, please post them here.

• Questions or comments about the book, The Year of the Hangman.

• Questions about characters in the book.
• Questions about places or events in the book.

• Questions about future projects.

Greetings and welcome to Week Four of The Year of the Hangman book discussion. This week you will finish the novel.

In weeks past we’ve had multiple questions for each week, and the discussions have been very thought provoking! This week we change it up a bit and have only one question. It’s a good one so read below and get ready to make a comment.

This is your chance to voice your opinion. Even if you have not posted a single item all month – go ahead and type in a response to this question.

I have contacted Gary Blackwood about the blog. He is very busy right now researching source material for his current project(s), but I’ll see if we can have him join us for some questions. Use the Page Link at the right to post questions you have for the author; if he has the time, I’m sure he would love to know what you are wondering. Take advantage of a rare opportunity to speak to the author through these discussions.

Next week I would like to open up the blog for some final thoughts and feedback on how you think this experiment went and what I can do to make it better. This is’t the first time I’ve done this book discussion thing, and it will not be the last. One thing is for sure, I want to improve my skills some each time I deal with a new book.

If you have any questions or comments please e-mail me at
moshej@browardschools.com .
http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/westpinemiddle/

This week you will finish the book. We have had multiple questions for each of the past weeks, but this week you have just one question on which to comment.

The Year of the Hangman is a novel in which the author has taken a historical event and given it an alternate ending. Now it is your turn.

This week your comment needs to be an alternate ending to The Year of the Hangman.

• Tell us how you would change the ending.
• Tell us what happens to the various characters.
• What happens to George Washington?
• What happens to Crieghton, Uncle Hugh, Sophie, Ben Franklin.

This is your chance to write an alternate ending, be creative and good luck.

Maybe the author will make a comment or two about your alternate endings.

I just want to let you know that there are six questions available for Section Three.

You still only have to post to one of them.

Happy discussing!!

I think, at this point, it is important to remind you of something integral.

One post to a thread, a discussion does not make.

In order for this to be called a discussion there must be an exchange of ideas.

• Comment on one another’s comments. Agree, disagree.
• Ask for clarification if you do not know what someone means to say.
• Take someone’s idea and build on it, change it, make it your own.
• Post about experiences you’ve had.
• Ask about other’s experiences.

My friends and I have a saying, Stand for something, or you’ll fall for anything.

Creighton learns about many virtues some of which are honor, loyalty, honesty, humility. This thread deals with honor and loyalty. In chapter 16, the narrator tells us:

“But now Creighton understood for the first time the truth of the matter: If loyalty really was the most worthy of virtues, then loyalty that was misplaced or misguided must be the most worthless.”

Ask yourself:

1. What did Creighton’s father stand for? How can you take the lesson of what Creighton’s father died for and use it to grow?
2. What is meant by Creighton’s realization about loyalty? How can you personally use the knowledge Creighton has gained?
3. Do you stand for something that you (probalby) shouldn’t? Do you stand for anything? How do poeple see what you stand for in your actions?

There are a lot of questions in this thread. Pick one to answer. No matter which one you pick, try to talk about yourself as much as possible.

What is courage?

Throughout the first three sections of the book, Creighton struggles to come to terms with the circumstances surrounding his father’s death. After the ransacking and burning of the print shop, General Arnold speaks to Creighton about courage. General Arnold says the following about COURAGE:

“It’s a far more difficult thing to make up your own mind about what’s right and to act accordingly – to go against the demands of duty when it’s necessary, to take another path when you feel the one you’ve been led down is wrong. That requires real courage.”

Read one or more of the following articles, then post on the topic they present:

FBI E-Mail Refers to Presidential Order Authorizing Inhumane Interrogation Techniques from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) website.

TORTURE AT ABU GHRAIB as presented by The New Yorker Magazine online.

‘They said this is America . . . if a soldier orders you to take off your clothes, you must obey.’ as presented by Gaurdian Unlimited online.

The Guilt-Free Soldier: New Science Raises the Specter of a World Without Regret presented by The Village Voice online.

Hey all.

Thanks for checking in with the third week of The Year of the Hangman Book Discussion. We are currently in week three of our four(ish) week project. This week we are reading chapters 12 through 17.

Some interesting questions are in store, and I hope you leave a comment on at least one of them. There were some interesting perspecitves shared on whose responsibility it is to rebuild New Orleans, and whether or not it should be rebuilt at all.

Also, I was very happy to find most of you felt comfortable with the idea that teens should begin working at fifteen or earlier. I’m for it. My car is filthy. ; If you want some work, my car needs some attention.
The deal this week is the same as it has been in weeks past, you need only pick one discussion to participate in, but you are welcome to weigh in on as many topics as you would like to.

If you have any questions please contact me at moshej@browardschools.com.

A duel becomes a major event in this portion of the novel. One of the most famous duels in American history tragically takes the life of Alexander Hamilton.

Read more about the famous Burr-Hamilton duel that took place in 1804 at one of the links below.

In your comment for this post, explain why you think that Burr actually shot and killed Hamilton.

• Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr’s Duel at PBS.org
• Aaron Burr Kills Alexander Hamilton in a Duel offered by the National Park Service
• Duel at Dawn at EyeWitnessToHistory.com