Childhood Questions

In childhood, 
we press our nose to the pane, looking out.  
In memories of childhood, 
we press our nose to the pane, looking in.    
                                                                                                                  ~Robert Brault

Let's use CHILDHOOD as our theme this week and next and do some thinking about children's stories--both your own and fictional ones you might write for kids. 

Please choose some of these questions to answer in a New Post on your blog of at least 500 words.  Rather than answering many of them with short, surface answers, go into more detail about just a few.  Include images with your writing if you can. 

You could answer others in your journal, too.  You should have at least 10 new pages by the end of this week.

When you've finished your own, please leave a friendly and specific comment on 3 of your classmates' childhood blog posts.

1. What is your most poignant childhood memory? The one that sticks out the most? Write out as much as you can remember and then fill in the details with elaborate description.

2. Who was the most important person to you during most of your childhood? Your mom? Your dad? Another relative? A friend? An imaginary person? Show some examples in which you see how much influence this person (or imaginary person) had on you while you were growing up.

3. It seems like when you are a kid growing up you can't wait to get there and when you are a grown up you wish you could be back. Imagine one day in which you are granted adulthood as a child, and one day in which you are granted childhood as an adult. How do you utilize these 24 hour periods?

4. We all have that friend we had in childhood who later moved into a different popularity scale in middle or high school. Who was that friend and what did you two enjoy so much together when you were little?

5. What did you and your family do for entertainment when you were little? Did you play board games together? Go to movies? Go into extreme detail of a family fun night of some kind. 

6. What cartoon from your childhood is the most memorable for you? What made it stick in your head so strongly? Would you see a movie of it now if were made into a big blockbuster for the nostalgia purposes?

7.  What action makes you the most nostalgic for your childhood? Is it seeing old pictures or going through old clothes? Something else entirely? Write a story of you going through those nostalgic actions and having various memories of your childhood. 

8. How do you recall getting along with your family during your childhood? With your parents, siblings, and other relatives? Go though a typical reunion or holiday with your entire family in attendance during your childhood. Have fun going into excruciating detail. 

9. Is there something you know now you wish you knew when you were a kid?  Is there something you’ve come to know that you wish you didn’t?

10. It's your birthday! Pick a party that you had during your childhood or create an ideal birthday party for yourself at any young age and write a story about it.

11. You have been given the opportunity to go backwards. You can pick an age and start over again from that age. Do you pick one or not? What age would you go to? Describe your first week with your "old person" memories in your younger body. 

12.  Describe any childhood ailments or injuries you had. 

13.  Describe your favorite toy. What did it look like? How did it feel? 

14.  Describe your favorite books growing up. What made them special to you? 

15.  Describe your favorite game growing up. 

16.  Describe your nemesis growing up. Who made your life miserable and what did he/she do to make your life so rough? 

17.  Describe your favorite foods as a child. What did you eat then that you no longer eat?

18.  What was the biggest trouble you got into as a child? Describe what you did or didn’t do to deserve what happened to you. 

19.  What was your greatest childhood accomplishment? How did it make you feel? What influence do you think it has had on your life since? 

20.  Describe what you did or where you went as a child when you wanted to feel safe.

21.  Describe your personality as a child. In what ways has it changed as you’ve gotten older? In what ways has it stayed the same? 

22.  How has your opinion of your parents changed as you’ve grown older? 

23.  Describe your most interesting relative.

24.  Describe something that people would be surprised to know about your childhood.

25.  Describe some of the cultural influences in your childhood.  Do you know your heritage?

26.  Describe the home you grew up in. If you lived in several different homes, describe one or discuss the reasons for the frequent moves. Were you moving up or working your way down?

27.  Describe one of your first away-from-home experiences.

28.  Describe a smell that you remember from growing up. 

29.  What was your favorite family dinner as a child? 

30.  Talk about a time when you were grounded. 

31.  At what age did you learn to ride a bicycle? 

32.  What did you want to be when you grew up? 

33.  When you were a child, how did you imagine your teenage life?  Your adult life? 

34.  Describe someone who taught you to believe in yourself. 

35.  What frightening dream do you remember from your childhood? 

36.  What did you not like about your childhood? 

37.  Recall one of your favorite childhood movies. 

38.  What did you collect as a child? What did you like about these items

39.   Write about a photo of yourself as a child...

Inspired by Hopper

Nighthawks

Gas

Freight Car at Truro

Soir Bleu

Choose one of the 4 paintings (above) by American artist Edward Hopper we studied in class this week (his painting "Nighthawks" is referenced in the insurance commercial we watched) and write a piece of at least 200 words inspired by it.  You might do a short fiction piece or a personal narrative or maybe even a long narrative poem.  You can refer to your lists of sensory details and other thoughts in your journal entry completed in class for ideas.  Please create a New Post on your blog  by the end of class Thursday with your writing and include the painting, too.  Thanks!

We are moving on to a new theme (CHILDHOOD) on Friday, so please have all posts connected to ART completed by the end of the day on Thursday to earn points...

Window Poem

In a New Post on your blog, please share the Window Poem you created in your journal during class on Monday. Add an image. Thanks!

Optional: If you'd like to, also post your poem inspired by the view in or out of a window in Edward Hopper's painting "Marshall's House."  

Art/Therapy

I hope you enjoyed the process of coloring the printed mandala designs in class this week.  Mandalas are important to a variety of cultures, faiths and schools of thought...

You can create some interesting mandalas at this site.  If you click on the asterisks, there is more information about the different elements.

Leave a brief but thoughtful COMMENT (100 words or so) on this post answering one or more of these questions:

• How or why do you think art could be used as therapy?
• Can you think of other pieces of or types of art that are connected to certain faiths, disciplines or movements?
• What role does art play in your own life?
• If you could be any kind of artist, what would you be?  Why?
• What do your doodles say about your personality?  Check this site or others for reference.
• Why do you think Adult Coloring Books are so popular right now?  This article has some ideas.

Read everyone else's comments, too, and reply back if you'd like!

Inspired by your artist

In a New Post on your blog please choose 2 pieces by the artist you profiled Wednesday and write a narrative poem of at least 10 lines for each. 

A narrative poem is one that tells a story.  It doesn't need to rhyme.  You could tell a made-up story inspired by the painting, you could tell a story from your own life the piece makes you think of, you could make up a story about the subjects in the painting...You could connect your two 10-line poems or let them stand on their own. Try to include vivid, sensory details and rich, interesting word choices.  You might even try to include a poetic device (like alliteration, simile, repetition, etc.) if you're comfortable doing so.  

Please include an image of the piece of art you are writing about in your post.  Give the post a creative title.

Artist Profile

Grumpy Cat works in oils

Please profile the artist you chose to study in a New Post on your blog.  

Please include all  the information from your brochure, but instead of listing it, write it more like a life story in paragraphs.  

Include an image and/or self-portrait of the artist as well as 2-3 images of the artist's most famous works.  

Title Your Post Artist Profile: ______ (name of artist).  

Here is an example of this post done well.  Thanks!

In the News [papers]

In a New Post on your blog, please share some writing inspired by our dig through newspapers Tuesday.  You might have one longer piece or several shorter ones, but come up with at least 250 words.  Include some images and a catchy title.  You could mention the headline, photo, ad, etc. that sparked your idea in an Author's Note, or you could leave that a mystery...but don't just describe or narrate what you cut out--make up something new.

Six Word Memoirs

In a New Post on your blog, please share whichever of the 6-Word Memoirs you came up with in class  that you are comfortable sharing.  Just one or all of them.  Include an image or images.  You don't need to explain them, but you could if you wanted to. You could also submit what you've come up with to the Smith magazine website.  Here's a link to the video we watched if you'd like to send it around to your friends and see which ones they think could apply to you (and themselves...).

Blackout

Thanks for trying the book page blackout technique (scientific terminology there) in class Tuesday. Please share at least one of your blackout text pieces as a COMMENT on this post. You could type the text you left on the page as a sentence or poem or story.  You could also take a picture with your phone and post your work that way on your own blog, but that is optional.

I'm thinking you could do this same technique with any printed material containing a good chunk of text to work with. I also think you could be inspired to write all sorts of other pieces by using your blacked out piece as a starting point.

You could visit Austin Kleon's website to see what others have come up with and even post your own work there if you're up for it. 

I Write Like...

As we do some thinking about how what we read inspires or influences what we write, I thought it might be fun for you to check out a website I've seen that analyzes a bit of your own writing and tells you what published author your writing is similar to.

I tried it with one of my blog posts and evidently I write like Dan Brown. I know who that is, but I haven't read any of his books. Interesting.  I also found this interesting tidbit which confirmed my suspicions that there wasn't much heft to this particular tool, but hey...

Go to I Write Like and try it yourself. 

Go to the ProProfs What Famous Writer Are You? quiz and try that one.

Leave a comment on this post telling us your results (and what you think of them) when you do.  You might have to look up the author for more information if you don't recognize the name.  The ProProfs quiz said I write like our very own Missouri native Mark Twain.  Hmmm...

Memorable Passage

Post a passage (probably no more than a paragraph or so) from a book that was memorable to you. Type the passage in word for word and add some of your own thoughts (250 words or more) before and/or after, explaining why this particular set of words caught your attention or has stayed in your memory.  Title this post Memorable Passage.  Include an image with this post, too.

I write quite a bit on my own blog about what I read, if nothing else just to remember, but often to reflect on words that stuck with me. If you are so inclined or need some ideas about books to read or what you might write about reading, you can check out my posts here and here and here and here and here.  Also here and here.  But that's totally optional.

Writers as Readers

I'd like you to do some thinking and writing about how what we read plays into our creative process, how the stories we read might inspire our own character and plot ideas, how we might both consciously and unconsciously pick up sentence patterns, vocabulary and writing styles from the authors we are exposed to. 

Choose 5-6 of these to answer in a post (500 words or so) on in a New Post on your own blog.  Title this post “Writers as Readers” and include 2-3 images. You can even add links to author's web pages or book reviews or other related websites if you'd like. I can show you how to do this.

1. When you read, what do you need to be comfortable (environment, snacks, lighting)?

2. What genres (types of writing) interest you? What specifically about this genre interests you? Why are you drawn to science fiction books, for example?

3. Which author do you think your writing style is most like?  Do you purposely imitate certain writers and/or try to avoid writing like certain writers?

4. What is one of your best memories connected with reading?

5. Have you ever picked up a book and been excited to turn the next page, then the next, then the next? What book? Why couldn’t you stop reading?  Is there a book you had to just trudge through to the finish?

6. Who was your first reading teacher? Why do you remember her/him?  Was it a “teacher” or someone else (a family member?) who “taught” you?

7. What was the first book you remember reading? Why does this book stand out in your memory?

8. What is your favorite book or series? Why is this your favorite?

9. Complete the one or more of the following sentences and explain your answer.

“When I finished reading (blank), I was angry afterwards because….”

“When I finished reading (blank), I was sad because…”

“When I finished reading (blank), I was happy because…”

10. Some people refuse to read popular novels, such as the Harry Potter series due to themes they deem as glorifying the occult. Do you think books have the power to move people to action in something they have no interest in before they begin the first page?

11. When you write, do you continually envision the “reader” of your piece?  Who do you think would be interested in reading your work?  Does having a reader in mind affect how you choose your words, themes, ideas?  What’s different if you just write for yourself knowing no one else will ever read what you come up with?

12. Do you think that someone who reads a lot might become a stronger writer?  Do you think we pick up vocabulary, sentence structures, themes, etc. from the books we read that come out directly or indirectly in our own writing?

13. Do you think you’d ever write a book someday?  Do you know what it would be about?  How would you want to be described on the “About the Author” at the front of the book?

I'm sure many of you are avid readers. I just think there's such endless inspiration and personal growth that is possible when you take the time to consider the ideas others have put in print. There is so much out there to read...how will we ever get through all of it we want to?

Keeping it real (like Dan)

In a New Post share your thoughtful answers to 4-5 of the Dan In Real Life questions.  Shoot for about 500 words.  Include an image.

Please be sure you've posted the work connected to MOVIES by the end of class on Thursday so we can move on to a new theme (BOOKS/TEXT) on Friday.

For class Friday, please bring 3 books that mattered to you to share briefly with the class.