The Impact of Thinking Routines

I have always thought of thinking routines as incredibly dull and, quite frankly, boring. Thinking routines, to me, used to be tedious reflection processes through long lists of questions, which were supposed to help students think step by step and fully evaluate their work. I didn’t understand how thinking routines could be applied outside of the classroom. To help explain how my thinking has changed, I have incorporated the thinking routine “I used to think… now I think…” into this piece of writing. 

Ping-Pong! (Political Cartoon Creation + Analysis)

In table tennis, two players pass a ball from one to the other, and back again, until someone misses the ball. Then, it is picked up again and used in another game.

Political Cartoon Analysis

At first glance, this cartoon seems to be illustrating a cartoon MacDonald version of the American government, along with three humorous lines to create irony against the political system’s fat stomach. The audience first notice the clown, then realize

Quiet: Non-Fiction Book Presentation

Never Lose Your Connection (Advert Creation and Analysis)

What product doesn’t come with a price? In this advertisement, a “personal” hotspot with a “never-ending connection” is promoted. A combination of graphics, font and

It’s Not Okay Advert Analysis

My Reflection:

“Layers” Analysis Presentation

My Reflection:

Understanding Map: “Peeling the Fruit”

Leaving Identity Issues To Other Folks Analysis

Have you ever been put inside a box, and no matter how hard you try to prove yourself, nobody seems to understand? In the vignette Leaving Identity Issues to Other Folks, Phyllis Allen is “black and angry” — she fights for freedom for fellow African-Americans in the United States. In the text, the author writes about her evolution of beliefs through different time periods, one of which refers to the African-American movement in the late ‘40s to ‘50s. Using various literary devices like flashback scenes, symbols, and slang, she critiques the American society with her personal style. Through the setting, character, and action, Allen promotes human rights and “being the best you can be” when facing racism.

Gil’s Furniture Bought and Sold Analysis

Is there anything you own that even if somebody offered to pay a million dollars for it, you wouldn’t let it go? What does that specific object mean to you and how does it express how you feel? In the vignette Gil’s Furniture Bought and Sold from Cisneros’s novella The House on Mango Street, a simple, ordinary music box means the world to Gil, and he does not agree to sell it for anything. Through analyzing this vignette and especially how this music box makes an impact on the characters in the story, we can see that both Esperanza and Gil feel a need to express their cultural identities fully and to find their rightful place in the society.

Ocean Breeze

I watch my father work, absently counting the countless strands of grey-white hair on his head, each strand of grey hair representing a worry that he once had. It can even by mistaken as artificial grass if dyed green. The curtains gently sway and create a beautiful sound with his rapid typing, blowing the corners of the A3 pages of his building plan of the Eiffel Tower that he puts in a seemingly disorganized pile in front of him. His hair smells like anti-dandruff shampoo.

Ice-cold Inferno

I clutch my phone with both hands and hold it against my chest, where my heart races at a million miles per minute. Cold, the bitter cold winds wrap around me, forcing me to stay rooted on the spot, unable to move.

No Speak English Literary Analysis

Which culture do you belong to? Many people struggle while trying to represent themselves and the cultures they are connected to. Vignettes are a good way to do so. As a brief descriptive writing piece, a vignette is a slice of life, a photograph full of sensory details, about a specific event, place, person, or object. Not only do these devices enhance the narrator’s delivery, but also when used in vignettes, they can effectively show conflict between different cultures. In No Speak English from the novella The House on Mango Street, Mamacita feels disconnected from the environment she lives in because she is isolated from English speaking society. The use of foreign language can emphasize the discrimination between people; mother language can affect how people express themselves; and vignettes are an effective way of combining and expressing all the cultures each of us are connected to as a whole.

Ewe

Hi. Since you’re new here, you’d probably want to know who I am, and where I come from.

No, actually, I don’t think you’d want to know. Because you’re just here to look around, then get straight on with your business, and anticipate the occasional distraction by the gossiping student or two.

But you saunter into the room, arrange your lesson materials, and start conversing with

End of Unit: Reflection

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