Now Read This

Each week or two, I will attempt to highlight the efforts of some AP Lang bloggers who are writing interesting stuff on their blogs. Since we haven’t really gotten them going yet, today I’ll link to some blog posts featuring former students.

First is tsmarcus90, an AP Lang veteran of four years ago. More recently, she has been blogging here and then about her travels. The name of the blog is Travels in Taiwan, but I have it on good authority that she is about to begin blogging about a current trip to India as well.

Here’s a Des Moines Register politics blog by Kathie Obradovich. She wasn’t an AP Lang blogger, but she mentions one: Andrea Nemecek, who announced the Iowa delegation’s votes last night after President Bill Clinton’s speech. Andrea, for her part, has written a post or two for the Obama campaign’s blog.

Then there’s Kristine Gift, who blogged for AP Lang back in the spring of 2008 when I first started this project. She writes about grad school and–like some of you–about being an avid runner. (Some of you may want to consider copying her page containing half-marathon times.)

Here’s that post from Ta-Nehisi Coates, writing about the ethics of watching pro football. Within his post, you’ll find links to the New York Times, Malcolm Gladwell’s interview with Slate magazine, and Chris Berman’s commentary.

Here’s the senior video that we Kennedy teachers collaborated on, under the direction of Documentary Specialist Deb Baber:

By the way, the quote on my hand is from Conan O’Brien: “If you work very, very hard, and be nice, amazing things will happen.” Here’s the terrific speech O’Brien gave at Dartmouth’s commencement in 2011:

Hi Folks,

Here’s the map for how you get to the Iowa Memorial Union in Iowa City. There’s a parking ramp right across the street. We’ll start at 9:00. Please be prompt, but also and more importantly, be careful. Give yourselves plenty of time to get to Iowa City.

See you tomorrow,

Dr. Ayers

Hey folks, don’t forget that there’s that tab up at the top that will take you to a few sites to help you with AP Lang test prep.

What’s that? You want a link to it within this post? *Sigh.*

Fine.

Sherry Turkle and Steven Johnson.

Hi Folks,

For Wednesday, please read Deborah Tannen’s essay, “There Is No Unmarked Woman” (pp. 388-392 of The Language of Composition). We will answer some multiple-choice questions about it at the beginning of class on Wednesday.

Thanks.

~ Dr. Ayers

Here’s a change of pace for a week when you’re taking Iowa Assessments and revising an essay: a 1965 debate between James Baldwin and William F. Buckley, Jr., both intellectual giants of that era. I’ve embedded a short excerpt here, but follow the first link above for the whole thing.