This week’s visual literacy post is a little different. In honour of Martin Luther King Day (in the States), we are going to watch his “I Have a Dream” speech. You can find more information out about him here, and here. If you are interested in authentic artefacts (things actually written or created by Martin Luther King Jr.), check out this slightly more challenging website.
In your comment, I want you to consider the following question: Do you have to be disobedient if you want justice? Consider the speech, but also consider the things happening in the world today – the Black Lives movement, the arguments about cultural appropriation, the conflicts in the United States around race and religion. What do you think?
Those Guys and the Super Smith Smurfs are in the midst of our poetry units – at the same time as the New York Times is having its Seventh Annual Found Poetry contest. Naturally, we decided to enter. There are almost six hundred comments on the blog post at last count, so for ease of locating ours, here they are. (This entry will be updated as students add their poems to the comments.)
The New York Times is doing its annual News Rap contest now. Students 13 to 19 years old can choose from at least four important news stories from the New York Times this year to write their 12- to 16-line rap – and they can be all along one topic (say the Syrian crisis?) to ensure your rap makes more sense. Raps must be submitted by 4 am our time on Tuesday, January 12 as a comment to the post linked to above.
Need some inspiration? Check out Flocab’s Year in Rap for 2014.
As always, if you choose to submit to a contest, that counts as your WWS for the period. Some of you are quite creative rappers – I look forward to seeing what you do!
