Music to Inspire the Imagination
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When you read, do you ever tap your foot? Does music ever spark an idea in your head? Can you come up with a song or an artist that blends music and literature? Joyce Carol Oates wrote one of her most enduring works of short fiction after hearing Bob Dylan on the radio. This week, I’ve…
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When you read, do you ever tap your foot? Does music ever spark an idea in your head? Can you come up with a song or an artist that blends music and literature? Joyce Carol Oates wrote one of her most enduring works of short fiction after hearing Bob Dylan on…
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This Is What I Believe: Good teachers should know how to show a little solidarity with their students. I mean we should all value student experience. It’s not about asking students to write about their background in an introductory essay; it’s about asking them to utilize their background in everything they write. I know, I know,…
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I live in Mexicali in a house full of books. When I’m invited over to my neighbors or friends, I don’t see too many. Books, that is. I have this sneaking suspicion that it might be that way for a lot of my students. I’m not saying they don’t read, but I don’t think they’ve…
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In a year of political upheaval, I will encourage my students to explore complex social issues in their writing: civil rights, gay rights, gun violence, racism. In a few of my classes we are reading Sixties novels. We discuss Cesar Chavez and John F. Kennedy. We learn of the Moonlanding and the Vietnam War. Because…
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Like the rest of us, Maribel felt for Susanna's struggle to control her emotions in the memoir Girl, Interrupted. Here, she's found a similar story in singer Bethany Dillon. Both Susanna and Bethany share this gift of sensitivity, but at the same time they find themselves all alone.
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Recently in my English classes, we have been examining the lyrics to our favorite songs to use in our writing. To my surprise, many of my students are coming back to me with lines from such diverse sources as Pink Floyd and/or Marvin Gaye. When I ask them where and how they found these songs,…
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My students hate me. They feel as if they are forced to listen for meaning in their music. After a brief struggle, Cecilia found a song to match the fears of Girl, Interrupted's Susanna Kaysen. We are all prisoners of our own minds. For a brief escape…. Listen to the group 21 Pilots. Read Cecilia.
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As I write this post, various news reports have Joni Mitchell slipping in and out of consciousness in an L.A. hospital room. How sad for her friends, family and fans. Our prayers are with her. One of my classes is currently finishing T.C. Boyle’s The Tortilla Curtain, and they now will have to select a…
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Wait! I just asked to my students to scour Girl, Interrupted for scenes, characters, events, conversations that would make the basis of a their soundtrack selection. They are going to match their music with meaningful ideas from the book. I’ve already seen students make use of the Red Hot Chile Peppers song “Porcelin” to represent…