Could I, a Californian by now, complain about the timid sun rays that grace a plum tree that refuses to acknowledge this is fall? While the world outside roars, the president of Pakistan declares state of emergency, according to a NYTimes alert, click here for the full link, I see in the eyes of my mind a remarkable evening spent with husband and son. The cybercreatures, raised and used to computers for everything, actually came into the living room to sit down and read. What a concept!
I was on the phone with a friend discussing why so many kids know so little about American history. One obvious reason is the official choice of books, a more recent crop of multi-ethnic literature. Combined with the appeals of contemporary life: games, sports, mobile phones with games, peer pressure, only avid readers will read beyond the curriculum.
Another discussion to consider is what is being done for the gifted and talented in some well-known districts. It is clear a child who has an IQ of 75, in in eleventh grade and performs on a Dick and Jane type test with huge letters and short paragraph at ninth grade level should receive some help.
Last year, however, a department chair pointed out all these boys who are gifted and can't function up to their ability. A Jurassic view keeps them from receiving simple services, such as more time or help in organization.
Our evening had the flavor of longtime gone reading sessions in family; almost a "Little Women" experience; not so schmaltzie, though. The University of Virginia provides all possible info on this beloved novel, from e-text to commentary. Just click.
We sat to read "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe, just to see if the level of difficulty would be okay for the cyborgs to bear. They bore it well. Click on "The Raven" to hear it and learn how to read it out loud. As for interpretations of Poe's The Raven, you can find many on the Internet. Poe bragged about how he constructed "The Raven" here, click.
Poe's assumption of the logic of an œuvre that starts at the end and goes on in flashback can work except in one case. What if, say, what if the world that roars outside reaches Dr. Strangelove's final solution? But then my old fashioned MacBookPro wouldn't be tapping its keys to the strokes of my fingers now or ever more.
Just a last note: Senator Obama, dear; Now is the time for Hillary/Bill Ricahardson 2008.
Below: Flickr Sharing Cinerama Dome authentic 1963 clock.
Comments