Jay's Sixties Research Trip

Note from the Editor:

This past semester my students  wrote  about the Sixties.  Week by week, we exchanged ideas about Protest and Change. We  searched the campus databases for information about Civil Rights, The Women's Movement, Gay Liberation, The Sexual Revolution.

At the time I write this, our president, in his final days in office, is discussing Martial Law with his closest advisors.  He has signaled to his extreme supporters to take their his fight to the streets.  Members of right-wing conspiracy groups and white supremacists have all promised to  attend.  Earlier this year, my students had all seen the television clips of heavily-armed riot police firing tear gas into the crowds of peaceful protesters in major cities across our nation.

In the sixties, I was too young to understand what was going on in this country. But I'm certainly old enough now. I encourage my students to learn from the past to understand what is going on today. With Jay’s “Back to the Future” Research Project, I directed my students to find their purpose. Write about an idea that impacts their lives today. We are writing about Race, Gender, Power and Access. Currently, we are living in turbulent times. The future of our country is at stake. My students need to Speak Out!  Their voices need to be heard.

 

-- Jay Lewenstein

Four Dead in Ohio - What if You Knew Her/ And Found Her Dead on the Ground? - Neil Young

I often encourage  my students to  develop papers on Civil Unrest.   In their writing,  they take us back  50 years to Kent State, The Watts Riots, and Bloody Sunday.  What would they do if they saw the same injustices on their streets today? 

 

This photo was taken 50 years ago on the Kent State campus.  Kent State is a small teachers college in Ohio.   On May 4, 1970 -  this may be at the height of the Vietnam War - the National Guard was called in to restore order due to Anti-War Protests.   Armed soldiered fired into a crowd.   Four students were killed.  Nine more were injured.  The incident divided the country.  Students near and far intensified their campus demonstrations against U.S. policies.   People took to the streets.  The incident is now known as the Kent State Massacre.  We would never again be able to trust our government.

 

Note to My Students: REGISTER TO VOTE! 

Fifty Years of Strong, Independent Women

 One goal in this research project is for my students to explore how we got here today.  What is going on in this country relative to Race, Gender, Power, and Access? Here I encourage my students to discuss how gender stereotypes are reinforced and undermined under our current administration.  This isn’t anything new!  We all know about Cesar Chavez, but when I discuss Dolores Huerta, an eerie silence often overcomes the room.  Dolores fought most of her life for the rights of farmworkers, but sadly, as a woman, her accomplishments are pushed into the background of most history lessons. In high school, my students studied the contributions of Martin Luther King Jr to The Civil Rights Movement in the sixties, but they never have heard of Women’s Rights Leader Gloria Steinem, who TODAY is still speaking Truth to Power.  Several of the essays you will see published on this site express the voice of young women in this class, truly grateful for the unyielding  courage, spirit, and sacrifice of the women who have paved their way.   I think it was Sam Cooke who said it:  A Change Is Gonna Come. I can feel it in the air. 

Stuff We've Been Reading - Motorcycle on the Sea of Tranquility - by Patricia Santana

 
Our sixties theme led me to assign the reading of Patricia Santana’s novel Motorcycle on the Sea of Tranquility.  Set during the Vietnam War era, it’s a love story between a returning war vet and his younger sister.  The war vet’s name is Chuy.  He’s not the same guy he was when he left.  He’s distant and he’s violent.  He frightens and pushes away everything that crosses his path.  Today we might call his condition PTSD.  Back then, we just didn’t know much  about it.  The only one who has his back is his 14-year-old sister Yoli. When everyone else in the family steps back,  she steps forward. 

The year is 1969, and President Nixon is escalating the violence in Southeast Asia.  Men are landing on the the moon.  Protesters are marching for Civil Rights. In our classroom discussions,   I try to present a historical perspective, but most of the class seems focused upon Race and racism. Sex and sexism. We closely follow the relationships in the story to write about social injustice, discrimination, harm, dominance, suffering and misery. 

To see a brief review of our class reading selection, please CLICK on  the following link: Motorcycle.

This is book is going to be great.  You will see.

Paz,

JL

 

Sixties Quote Sandwich - Spread the Word

    

Today I share with you a nice lesson for the integration of quotes into your research paper. The assignment will call for effective structure, documentation, and critical thinking skills.  I encourage you to make a QUOTE SANDWICH for your essay – the added information you provide will help your reader better understand and appreciate your quote.  The Quote Sandwich will look GREAT anywhere you decide to insert it in your paper.  

*If you are writing about Muhammad Ali, do you want to share his refusal to go to Vietnam: "I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong..." 

 

* If you are writing about LSD, could you share what Harvard Professor Timothy Leary suggested to young people everywhere: "Turn on, tune in, drop out." 

 

* I'm going to write about John Lennon's words shared in a newspaper interview at the height of Beatlemania:  “We’re more popular than Jesus now.”   

 

Jay's Tips:

• Your quote could be something someone said (or written) in a research article.
•  IT SHOULD NOT BE SOMETHING COPIED AND PASTED  FROM A QUOTATION SITE - your mission, should you choose to accept  it, is to analyze your quote based on what you have read.. 
• But, it has to be something INTERESTING!  You DECIDE.

To see Jay's Step-by-Step Process (Recipe) for  your own quote Sandwich, please CLICK on the following link: John Lennon

Follow Jay's Writing Models.  This is  going  to  be  great.  You will see.

 

Sixties Visual Analysis Post

    I will ask you to choose a REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE of your  SIXITES TOPIC to analyze and explain in your research paper - 300 words.  It could be a very famous moment.  It could be a scene few people know about.  It could be a professional advertisement. It could be a snapshot in time

YOU DECIDE.  Be  Creative.  Be Thoughtful.  Be clear on Historical Significance.  Jay's Tip: A properly placed Visual Analysis in your Research Paper will enhance meaning and interest for your readers.

* The example above - On my Canvas Discussion Board - I submitted a visual analysis of Marilyn Monroe - at a party with the Kennedy Brothers.  I tried to reinforce an element of  Sexual Harassment that Marilyn experienced nearly all her life. 

Here are a few of Jay's Writing Prompts  you should consider:

1. Discuss the basic elements of your image: picture, captions, description, colors, shapes.
   
   2. What visual element grabs your attention first. What seems to be most important?
   
   3. What’s the message?
   
   4. What is being shown, and what I being left out.
   
   5. Do the facial expressions tell you anything. What is on the mind(s) of the person in the photo. How can you tell.
   
   6. What emotions are involved? For the people in the image. For the people seeing this image for the first time.
   
   7. What type of event(s) led up to the shooting of the picture. Like how or why was this picture taken. What is going on in this world. What do you think is going to happen afterwards.

To see a more of Jay's Tips and Writing Models, please CLICK on the following link:  Marilyn Monroe.

You choose the writing prompts that best apply to your image.  Choose SOME of them.  Or, choose ALL of  them.  Visual Analysis will draw your readers deeper into your discussion.

This is going to be great.  You will see.

Paz,

JL

 

Jay's ANOREXIA Post - Quote Sandwich

In English 1A, several of my students are focusing upon mental illness in their community profiles.  Below I practice writing about  consequences of anorexia in young women.  I read about the tragic death of singer Karen Carpenter.  I share a quote from Marya Hornbacher's memoir Wasted.  Anorexia is a dangerous condition that is not as rare as people might think. 

When Mayra was only nine years old, she became obsessed with the way she looked.  Every time she looked into the mirror, she saw someone FAT.  Soon she began starving herself to lose weight.  Anorexia took over her life at age 15.  “You never come all the way out of the mirror,” Mayra wrote in her memoir Wasted. “You stand, for the rest of your life with one foot in t his world and one in the other, where everything is UPSIDE DOWN and SAD” (285).  Here, Marya warns us that Anorexia is not just a temporary PHASE many young girls go through. It should be regarded as a DISEASE.  Sometimes a fatal one.   The obsession to lose weight can consume you.  It will dominate your thinking and reason.  When you look in the mirror, you will never be satisfied.  The only thing you think about is losing more weight. 

Jay's SUMMARY Post: "Pandemonium at Shea"

 

Estimados Estudiantes:   Your SUMMARY of a RESEARCH ARTICLE will look great near the top of your paper.  It will show your readers you have done your homework, that you have special knowledge to share from your research.  There is no one way to write a summary.  Earlier in the semester we practiced with WHO, WHAT, WHERE WHEN, WHY, HOW.   This week I present to you an interesting strategy to write a summary.  I ask you to CAPTURE  THE AUTHOR'S MAIN IDEA.  Below, I practiced my own research summary for a Beatles paper with "Pandemonium at Shea." 

Jay's Tip:  In your summary, consider answering the following questions:

1. WHAT is the article about?

2. WHAT is the MAIN IDEA - What is the author telling you?

3. WHAT are the main arguments - What are like 2-3 most important points!

4. CAN you provide a MEANINGFUL EXAMPLE from the text?

5. WHAT is the essay's CONCLUSION - How does it end?  What's it all mean?

6. WAIT!  Don't forget to include the title of the article when you introduce your paragraph.

Here is how I went about it:

1. WHAT is the article about? 

When the Beatles came to town, they brought Beatlemania with them.

2. WHAT is the MAIN IDEA - What is the author telling you?

Up until 1965, no one band or artist had ever put on a stadium concert before in the U.S. More than 55,000 screaming fans filled the seats.  Fensom believes that the excitement was so great for the Beatles that it was a stroke of luck that no got hurt. 

3. WHAT are the main arguments - What are like 2-3 most important points!

*  Because this Shea Stadium appearance was such a new idea, none of the promoters or security personnel really knew what they were doing.  The Beatles played in the middle of the baseball field.  Crazy screaming fans were held off behind wooden barricades and chicken wire.

*   From the moment the Beatles were introduced by Ed Sullivan, the crowd became so loud that the Beatles couldn't even hear themselves sing or play.  The hysteria was like something no one had ever seen before.

4. CAN you provide a MEANINGFUL EXAMPLE from the text?

* The City of New York paid off-duty cops to surround the field in case something crazy would happen:  like an out-of-control stampede of teen-age girls.   

* Just to bring the Beatles safely inside the stadium, the City arranged for them to be transported in a fortified armored car.

5. WHAT is the essay's CONCLUSION - How does it end?  What's it all mean?

Because this was New York City, the Beatles concert at Shea drew world-wide attention. Young people started letting their hair grow.  Boys and girls began learning to play the guitar the next day.  Bands were forming in garages all across the country.  From then on, Rock 'n' Roll would become HUGE. 

6. WAIT!  Don't forget to include the title of the article when you introduce your paragraph.

In his article "Pandemonium at Shea," author Michael J. Fensom....

HERE IS THE WAY MY SUMMARY LOOKS WHEN I COPY AND PASTE EVERYTHING TOGETHER:

In his article "Pandemonium at Shea," author Michael J. Fensom describes when the Beatles came to town, they brought Beatlemania with them. Up until 1965, no one band or artist had ever put on a stadium concert before in the U.S. More than 55,000 screaming fans filled the seats.   Fensom believes that the excitement in the stands was so great that it was a stroke of luck that no got hurt. Because this Shea Stadium appearance was such a new idea, none of the promoters or security personnel really knew what they were doing.  The Beatles played in the middle of the baseball field.  Crazy screaming fans were held off behind wooden barricades and chicken wire. From the moment the Beatles were introduced by Ed Sullivan, the crowd became so loud that the Beatles couldn't even hear themselves sing or play.  The hysteria was like something no one had ever seen before.   The City of New York paid off-duty cops to surround the field in case something crazy would happen:  like an out-of-control stampede of teen-age girls.   Just to bring the Beatles safely inside the stadium, the City arranged for them to be transported in a fortified armored car.  This was New York City, so the Beatles concert at Shea drew world-wide attention. Young people started letting their hair grow.  Boys and girls began learning to play the guitar the next day.  Bands were forming in garages all across the country.  Because of the Beatles,  from Shea Stadium on, Rock 'n' Roll would be HUGE. 

Jay's Final Note:

* I hope the format helps you.

* It helped me develop a well-developed, well-balanced summary.

* It was FUN.  It went QUICK

* Your summary will look great in your second paragraph.

Do you have any questions or concerns.  Please contact me by email: [email protected]

This is going to be GREAT.  You will SEE!

Paz,

JL

Below:  Youtube video of the Beatles at Shea - 

Jay's Note:  I think they had to insert - redub - music from another concert.  It was just too loud to hear anything.

Jay's Sample Definition Paragraph - Abstinence-Only Sex Ed.

    Abstinence-Only Sex Education Programs are school  curriculums designed to stop or delay teen-age sex.  Inside the Abstinence Only Classroom, the goal is nothing.  The programs are highly restrictive.  The instructors  pay little attention to  the effectiveness of contraceptives and safer-sex behaviors.  Instead of introducing students to discussions of birth control, Abstinence-Only programs are based on the premise birth control does not work.  Teens are told the  only SURE way to avoid unwanted pregnancy is through their pledge to abstinence. The designers of these programs  may have the best intentions, but their results are  the worst. The pledges are not realistic at all.   And teens that break their pledges are most unlikely to use contraceptives in their future  sexual encounters.  Studies show sexually active teenagers who do not use contraception become pregnant with in a year.  States who are the leading sponsors of Abstinence-Only Classrooms are also the leaders in the highest teen pregnancy rates.  Abstinence-Only  classes often resemble "Scared Straight" programs  to frighten their students into submission.  Instructors often use notorious sexist viewpoint.   They proclaim  girls that are having sex before marriage are dirty and disgusting.  They compare them to  “used chewing gum and candies that have been passed from hand to hand.”  Many of the girls I see in my classes have grown up in harsh environments.  Their families are broken.  Their streets are dangerous.  Some of them have lost their virginity before ever seeing high school.  This is what I think:  sex education should be provided in a Safe and Positive environment to explore complex issues.  No power points.   No multiple choice tests.  No crazy diaramas or posters.   Students would benefit from speaking about sex as a normal part of the class.  English class is the ideal environment to incorporate positive aspects of human sexuality into student learning.

 

Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" - by Edith Mendoza

 

Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" became an anthem for female attitude, and set fashion trends.    The video below shows Cyndi wearing bright, outrageous clothes that looked like they came from a thrift store (they often did).  In the video Cindy confronts the gray and submissive mother, hitting against the wall raised by the father.  "Girls just Want to Have Fun"  is considered the first multi-racial video in history.  Too bad, because the world of pop needs always someone intelligent like her. And most of the girls that were able to ride the music success after her, owe her most of their results.

Yoli may have come long before Cyndi, but in Motorcycle on the Sea of Tranquility she shows some of the same independent spirit.  

Song Lyrics/ Text Passage Comparison Chart

"Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" - by Cyndi Lauper	Girls Just Want to Be Equal  -    Motorcycle on the Sea of Tranquility  - by Patricia Santana
My mother says, "When you gonna live your life right?" Oh mother dear we're not the fortunate ones And girls, they wanna have fun	I had hit the road,all right, my hands clenched over the steering wheel, the go-cart charging forward in response in my wishes,Everyone was screaming,"Go, Yoli, Faster, faster!" (25).
That's all they really want Some fun When the working day is done Oh girls, they wanna have fun Oh girls just wanna have fun (girls, they wanna, wanna have fun, girls wanna have)	No wonder he didn't stop. What freedom, wild, lovely abandon, to ride on a huge motocycle, to feel its humming, its vibrations run through you body, you and the motorcycle one powerful piece of machinery, all the while casting your cares to the wind (140).
When the working day is done (they just wanna, they just wanna) Oh when the working day is done, oh girl (girls just wanna have fun	The night felt healing and full of promise (260).