English 1
Lord of the Flies
By William Golding
This reading journal belongs to:
____________________________
In Section ___
2
Reading Schedule—2014 F Block
The dates listed below are the dates by which you should have
completed both the reading and the questions found in this journal.
Reading Assignment
Date Due
Chapters 1
Tuesday, Nov. 18
Chapters 2-4
Thursday, Nov. 20
Chapter 5-7
Monday, Nov. 24
Chapter 8
Tuesday, Nov. 25
Chapters 9-12
Monday, Dec. 1
Other Important Dates
Tuesday, November 25—Introduction to Multi-Genre Research Project
Monday, December 1—Fishbowl Discussion
(participation is essential!)
Tuesday, December 2—Multi-Genre Work Day (computer lab)
Thursday, December 4—Mock Trial Activity/SEE Letter (HW)
Tuesday, December 9—Novel Comprehension Quest
Thursday, December 11—Multi-Genre Work Day (computer lab)
Monday, December 15—Project Presentations;
Multi-Genre Research Projects Due
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Reading Schedule-2014 H Block
The dates listed below are the dates by which you should have
completed both the reading and the questions found in this journal.
Reading Assignment
Date Due
Chapters 1-2
Wednesday, Nov. 19
Chapters 3-4
Friday, Nov. 21
Chapters 5-6
Monday, Nov. 24
Chapters 7-8
Wednesday, Nov. 26
Chapters 9-12
Monday, Dec. 1
Other Important Dates
Wednesday, November 26—Intro. to Multi-Genre Research Project
Monday, December 1—Fishbowl Discussion
(participation is essential!)
Wednesday, December 3—Multi-Genre Work Day (computer lab)
Friday, December 5—Mock Trial Activity/SEE Letter (HW)
Wednesday, December 10—Novel Comprehension Quest
Friday, December 12—Multi-Genre Work Day (computer lab)
Monday, December 15—Project Presentations;
Multi-Genre Research Projects Due
4
5
Part One:
Novel Essential Questions
Discussion and Participation Information
Classroom Activities and Discussion Questions
Additional Articles and Information
6
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Novel Essential Questions
As we explore the characters and actions in Lord of the Flies, we will keep coming back to
the same essential questions. These questions will guide our reading, analysis, and discussion
and should be considered as you prepare your Multi-Genre Research Project (for more
information, see Part Four of this packet.
*What makes an individual powerful?
*How does individual power change in relationships with others?
*Do individuals control groups, or do groups control individuals?
*How does a society maintain order? Are laws necessary?
*How do fear and desire for acceptance influence human behavior?
*What are the implications of this story for contemporary society?
*Does violence create power or control?
Class Discussion Expectations and Guidelines
Much of this unit will involve you verbally sharing in class. In order to do that effectively it is
imperative that you complete reading assignments and homework assignments on time.
You have the schedule for reading, so in most cases you are expected to be on track with
the class even if you are absent.
When we discuss topics, themes, and events in the story it is likely that not everyone will
agree. That’s okay. We don’t have to all agree on everything, but we do need to be
respectful of our classmate’s ideas and opinions. That means we don’t speak when
someone else is speaking, we don’t yell at one another, we don’t berate others’ ideas by
calling them “stupid” (or any variant of), we don’t roll our eyes or make faces at our
classmates, etc. We do encourage people to explain their opinions, give examples and real
world connections, and respectfully disagree when necessary.
The most important element of this process is you. Speaking. Out loud. In class. It will be a
very long, very boring few weeks if you aren’t willing to do this.
Participation points will be taken on random days throughout the unit. The next page lays out
information on how participation points will be awarded.
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Participation Points
Throughout the unit, participation points will be awarded for student involvement in class
discussions. During any one of these discussion days, students will have the opportunity to
earn up to 5 points.
All students will begin the class period with 3 points.
Students can earn additional points in one of the following ways:
- Answering one of the teacher-posed questions
- Making an observation or connection about the previous night’s reading
- Responding (positively) to another classmate’s comment or question, building on
it—not repeating it
- Writing a thoughtful, reflective Twit at the end of class
Students may lose points in one of the following ways:
- Failing to demonstrate active listening and engagement in the discussion
- Distracting classmates by speaking out of turn, utilizing cell phones, asking
unrelated questions, or otherwise poking or prodding neighbors
- Speaking negatively about a student or student’s ideas during discussion
- Repeating someone else’s ideas without adding new depth or examples
*Students engaged in active listening, demonstrated through eye contact, posture and
body language, and thorough, detailed end-of-class twits will not lose points.
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Pre-Reading Activities
Green Glass Doors
After playing the game, reflect on the following questions:
Leaders:
* How did it feel to be in charge?
* Was your leadership challenged? If so, how? What were the results?
* Was another leader’s role challenged? If so, how? What were the results?
Players:
* How did it feel to be able to come to the party? OR How did it feel to be left out of
the party?
All:
* What happened when certain people could or could not get through the doors?
* In this game, who had power and control?
* In what ways were power and control used? Give specific example
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Pre-Reading Activities
LHS Observation
Observe the student population here at LHS. Look at the various groups that exist.
Consider the characteristics that define and distinguish each group, such as mannerisms or
clothing preferences. Then answer the questions below.
What do these groups have in common?
In what ways do individuals behave differently when in a group versus alone? Be specific in
your examples.
Does each group have a leader? What distinguishes that leader from other group
members?
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Pre-Reading Activities
Code of Conduct—Before Reading
A code of conduct is a set of rules outlining the responsibilities of or proper practices for an individual, party or
organization. Related concepts include ethical codes and honor codes.
- wikipedia
Imagine you were stranded on a tropical island with a group of other teens. With your
group, design a code of conduct to live by that would teach the knowledge, values, and
skills you would need to surmount all the challenges you would face while living together.
Consider the following questions:
*How would you ensure that your own personal boundaries are respected?
*How would you ensure the safety of everyone in the group? (even the people you
might not like all that much?)
_____/15
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Code of Conduct—After Reading
A code of conduct is a set of rules outlining the responsibilities of or proper practices for an individual, party or
organization. Related concepts include ethical codes and honor codes.
- wikipedia
Consider the situations and events in the novel. With your group, reevaluate the code of
conduct you wrote before reading. Think about the situations in the novel and how the
characters acted and interacted with one another. Consider the discussions we’ve had in
class. In the space below, answer the following questions:
*After exploring the roles and relationships of people in light of Lord of the Flies, do you feel
that your original code of conduct would be sufficient to effectively manage all members
of the group trapped on the island? Explain your thoughts.
*With your group, redraft your code of conduct, specifically addressing any areas of
weakness you identified above.
_____/15
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Societal Expectations and Gender Roles
What are some expectations our society has for boys as they grow into adulthood?
How have these expectations changed over time? Give some examples.
On charts in part two of this packet you will explore a few of the major characters in the
novel. Take a few moments to work on the charts for Ralph, Piggy, and Jack with your group.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
After filling in the character charts, consider the PCW and RW wheels (pages ___ and ___)
and the character’s motivation to answer the following questions.
How does the evidence for each boy’s attributes reflect societal views of men?
How do societal views of men influence the amount of power and control each boy has or is
perceived to have by the other boys?
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The Acquisition of Power and Control
You’ve now read two chapters and analyzed three of the characters. Consider how the
boys have begun to create a society for themselves: Why do they generate the rules they
do? Looking at your character charts and the PCW (page ___), reflect on the following
questions.
How does each boy use his physical characteristics to influence individuals and the group?
How does each boy use his personality traits to influence individuals and the group?
How successful in controlling others is each of these three boys?
How does each boy acquire power?
Free-write on the following: Consider how personality characteristics of the three boys
affected their acquisition of power. Write a reflection on the similarities and differences
between these characteristics and those valued in society today.
_____/5
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Power and Control, Respect and Acceptance and Fear
Jot down some thoughts for each of the questions below.
Why do people choose to join a group?
Why do groups choose to accept others into their groups?
Why do groups choose to reject others from their group?
Why do people choose to remain in a group? What are the risks of leaving a group?
Free-Write: How does the boys’ society on the island compare to your own high school
environment or other behavior you have observed, experienced, or learned about? Give
examples and explain your thoughts.
_____/5
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Power and Control and Violence
Consider each of the following statements. Rank each one using the scale identified.
5 = I strongly agree
4 = I agree
3 = I neither agree nor disagree
2 = I disagree 1 = I strongly disagree
_____ Violence is never acceptable.
_____ Hunting is a great experience.
_____ Hunting isn’t considered violence because animals have no feelings.
_____ It is important to be the one in control.
_____ It is always better to be a leader than a follower.
_____ Sometimes, you have to do things that aren’t necessarily right in order to keep control.
_____ Power is always a good thing to have.
_____ You can be in control of a group or situation without necessarily having power.
_____ Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
_____ Too much power will always lead to violence.
_____ War is the result of people in charge having too much power.
_____ Fear is a strong motivator, so it’s good to use fear if you’re in power.
Connect to the text:
What do the focus on hunting and the desire to kill a pig reveal about the boys’ understanding
of life, violence, power, and control?
Considering all we discussed today, summarize your thoughts on these topics:
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The Beast Within
Part One: The Novel
Simon says, “...maybe there is a beast...What I mean is...maybe it’s only us.”
Working with your group, go back through chapters 5-8 and create a double entry journal
(see page ____ for instructions) examining this idea. In the left column, copy down examples
of the boys acting as beasts; the right column will contain your thoughts, reactions,
connections to the PCW (page ____), etc.
Part Two: The Newsroom
On the following pages are a series of articles about bullying, cyberbullying, and an analysis
of humans and their potential for evil. You will be assigned one of these articles to read and
analyze (yay for double-entry journals!) then discuss with a small group of others who have
read the same article.
Groups will work together to answer the questions below and then share their findings and
ideas with the class.
Boil down the article’s main idea into no more than three sentences.
Do you agree or disagree with the ideas presented in the article? Be clear and specific in
the support of your thoughts.
How does the information presented in your article relate to Lord of the Flies? Be sure to give
specific information and build strong connections.
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On Facebook, Bullies ‘Like’ if You Hate
By EMILY LAYDEN
For the digitally native generation, self-worth is accrued in likes.
My little brother went to school on a Friday morning last June, and this is what he heard: That
another boy, a sixth-grader, had written a Facebook status the previous night asking his friends to “like”
it if they hated my brother. The “like if you hate” question, the last time this informant had checked, had
gotten 57 thumbs-up. Verification for my brother’s generation – the younger half of my own – is a
statistical rat race, counted in friends, followers, re-tweets and re-pins. On an ordinary Friday morning,
my brother learned that his name had garnered 57 “like if you hates.”
This is a hard thing for me to imagine: 57 likes for a hate – a hate for a person, a little boy, my
little brother. But it’s more macroscopic, too. There is a marked difference between how my halfgeneration and my brother’s engages with and approaches the Internet. I remember dial-up and still
have my AOL.com e-mail address (it’s basically a giant spam folder, now). I weed through my Facebook
friends weekly, de-friending those whose names I don’t remember or maybe never really knew. I have
friends with separate work and personal Twitter accounts and those who take weekends off from the
Web. We deal with the Internet with separation. It is a tool to be used and put away.
For my brother’s half — the younger set, the one that did not grow up in step with the Internet,
but rather with it already established — there is no wariness, no understanding, no concept of an
Internet identity. There is no such thing for them, for example, as “Internet famous.” There is only fame,
and the allure of instant gratification. This is how cyberbullying has reached a fever pitch, and where I
feel my half of this generation has failed the younger.
We (my peers) use the numbers game. We understand how to turn hits on Web sites into ad sales,
how to drive traffic, how to analyze page views and visitors for a better understanding of successful
content — this is a legitimate business practice. We have done an abysmal job of translating this
understanding to the younger half. Instead, we have allowed an entire half-generation to believe, simply,
that more is more: To measure their existence against how many thousands of friends they have, how
many hundreds more they have than their classmates, how many likes they can get.
This fact alone is toxic enough, but far worse is that we have taught them the secret to a quick hit,
a fast follow: a cheap shot. Web sites like BuzzFeed and Gawker (and its sister sites Deadspin and
Jezebel) operate with a vicious reliance on views, so that any press is good press. Rage-baiting is
commonplace and infuriatingly successful, so the most prevalent language of the Internet is at its best
cynicism and its worst outright meanness. (This is all, of course, made worse by the hammered-home fact
that it is so easy to be cruel behind the safety of a computer screen. The cowardice is obvious.)
So my half of the generation (those of us in our 20s, the ones with job titles like “social media
manager,” the developers of apps like Instagram and Path), in not communicating the difference between
work and Web, between the Internet and reality, has allowed the younger set to seek personal validation
in Internet numbers. We have shown them that the easiest way to do so is through varying degrees of
cruelty. To eliminate cyberbullying, we must better address the Internet-bred narcissism at its core, and
we must all be held accountable. Both the older set of digital natives and the generation above us assume
that the Internet is a bubble – a space with limits. This is the logic behind the cyberbullying stance at my
brother’s school, who informed my parents in the wake of the 57 likes that cyber bullying is a “tricky”
matter that unfortunately falls largely outside their jurisdiction.
There is no jurisdiction for the bullied, no separation between Web and reality. On the Monday
after the Facebook incident, my brother dreaded school for fear of facing his 57 bullies, who probably
never gave their likes a second thought. The answer is not to teach our middle-schoolers that they are not
who they are online. It is, actually, quite the opposite. It is too late to establish distance. To end
cyberbullying, we must use the closeness we’ve allowed to breed to our advantage. We must teach them
that if one is a cowardly, bullying, rage-baiter online – no matter how many laughs had or page views
generated or ad space sold – then one is a bully off-screen, too.
This article appeared in The New York Times September 9, 2012 and can be accessed online at www.nytimes.com.
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Girl’s Suicide Points to Rise in Apps Used by Cyberbullies
By LIZETTE ALVAREZ
MIAMI — The clues were buried in her bedroom. Before leaving for school on Monday morning,
Rebecca Ann Sedwick had hidden her schoolbooks under a pile of clothes and left her cellphone behind, a
rare lapse for a 12-year-old girl.
Inside her phone’s virtual world, she had changed her user name on Kik Messenger, a cellphone
application, to “That Dead Girl” and delivered a message to two friends, saying goodbye forever. Then
she climbed a platform at an abandoned cement plant near her home in the Central Florida city of
Lakeland and leaped to the ground, the Polk County sheriff said.
In jumping, Rebecca became one of the youngest members of a growing list of children and
teenagers apparently driven to suicide, at least in part, after being maligned, threatened and taunted
online, mostly through a new collection of texting and photo-sharing cellphone applications. Her suicide
raises new questions about the proliferation and popularity of these applications and Web sites among
children and the ability of parents to keep up with their children’s online relationships.
For more than a year, Rebecca, pretty and smart, was cyberbullied by a coterie of 15 middleschool children who urged her to kill herself, her mother said. The Polk County sheriff’s office is
investigating the role of cyberbullying in the suicide and considering filing charges against the middleschool students who apparently barraged Rebecca with hostile text messages. Florida passed a law this
year making it easier to bring felony charges in online bullying cases.
Rebecca was “absolutely terrorized on social media,” Sheriff Grady Judd of Polk County said at a
news conference this week.
Along with her grief, Rebecca’s mother, Tricia Norman, faces the frustration of wondering what
else she could have done. She complained to school officials for several months about the bullying, and
when little changed, she pulled Rebecca out of school. She closed down her daughter’s Facebook page and
took her cellphone away. She changed her number. Rebecca was so distraught in December that she
began to cut herself, so her mother had her hospitalized and got her counseling. As best she could, Ms.
Norman said, she kept tabs on Rebecca’s social media footprint.
It all seemed to be working, she said. Rebecca appeared content at her new school as a seventh
grader. She was gearing up to audition for chorus and was considering slipping into her cheerleading
uniform once again. But unknown to her mother, Rebecca had recently signed on to new applications —
ask.fm, and Kik and Voxer — which kick-started the messaging and bullying once again.
“I had never even heard of them; I did go through her phone but didn’t even know,” said Ms.
Norman, 42, who works in customer service. “I had no reason to even think that anything was going on.
She was laughing and joking.”
Sheriff Judd said Rebecca had been using these messaging applications to send and receive texts
and photographs. His office showed Ms. Norman the messages and photos, including one of Rebecca with
razor blades on her arms and cuts on her body. The texts were full of hate, her mother said: “Why are you
still alive?” “You’re ugly.”
One said, “Can u die please?” To which Rebecca responded, with a flash of resilience, “Nope but I
can live.” Her family said the bullying began with a dispute over a boy Rebecca dated for a while. But
Rebecca had stopped seeing him, they said.
Rebecca was not nearly as resilient as she was letting on. Not long before her death, she had
clicked on questions online that explored suicide. “How many Advil do you have to take to die?”
In hindsight, Ms. Norman wonders whether Rebecca kept her distress from her family because she
feared her mother might take away her cellphone again.
“Maybe she thought she could handle it on her own,” Ms. Norman said.
It is impossible to be certain what role the online abuse may have played in her death. But
cyberbullying experts said cellphone messaging applications are proliferating so quickly that it is
increasingly difficult for parents to keep pace with their children’s complex digital lives.
“It’s a whole new culture, and the thing is that as adults, we don’t know anything about it because
it’s changing every single day,” said Denise Marzullo, the chief executive of Mental Health America of
Northeast Florida in Jacksonville, who works with the schools there on bullying issues.
No sooner has a parent deciphered Facebook or Twitter or Instagram than his or her children
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have migrated to the latest frontier. “It’s all of these small ones where all this is happening,” Ms.
Marzullo said.
In Britain, a number of suicides by young people have been linked to ask.fm, and online petitions
have been started there and here to make the site more responsive to bullying. The company ultimately
responded this year by introducing an easy-to-see button to report bullying and saying it would hire
more moderators.
“You hear about this all the time,” Ms. Norman said of cyberbullying. “I never, ever thought it
would happen to me or my daughter.”
Questions have also been raised about whether Rebecca’s old school, Crystal Lake Middle School,
did enough last year to help stop the bullying; some of it, including pushing and hitting, took place on
school grounds. The same students also appear to be involved in sending out the hate-filled online
messages away from school, something schools can also address.
Nancy Woolcock, the assistant superintendent in charge of antibullying programs for Polk
County Schools, said the school received one bullying complaint from Rebecca and her mother in
December about traditional bullying, not cyberbullying. After law enforcement investigated, Rebecca’s
class schedule was changed. Ms. Woolcock said the school also has an extensive antibullying campaign
and takes reports seriously.
But Ms. Norman said the school should have done more. Officials told her that Rebecca would
receive an escort as she switched classes, but that did not happen, she said.
Rebecca never boarded her school bus on Monday morning. She made her way to the abandoned
Cemex plant about 10 minutes away from her modest mobile home; the plant was a place she had used
as a getaway a few times when she wanted to vanish. Somehow, she got past the high chain-link fence
topped with barbed wire, which is now a memorial, with teddy bears, candles and balloons. She climbed
a tower and then jumped.
“Don’t ignore your kids,” Ms. Norman said, “even if they seem fine.”
This article appeared in The New York Times September 13, 2013 and can be accessed online at www.nytimes.com.
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PERSONAL HEALTH; A Bully's Future, From Hard Life to Hard Time
By JANE E. BRODY
The teasing started with a wisecrack about another person's sexual orientation, and escalated
when the object of the remark responded with a provocative taunt of his own. The next thing anyone
knew, one man had flung a metal chair, striking the other's face, shattering bones and partly severing his
nose.
It is the kind of bullying behavior you might expect from unruly teenagers. But in this case, the
authorities say, the bully was a New York City firefighter and his victim was a colleague, who had to be
hospitalized and placed on a respirator.
According to other firefighters, an endless flow of sometimes vicious and cruel taunts is commonplace in firehouse culture, with verbal abuse most often inflicted on young firefighters to toughen them
up.
But, as studies of younger bullies have repeatedly shown, bullying can have disastrous effects not
only on the victims but also on the bullies themselves, who often grow increasingly violent and antisocial.
A Stepping Stone
The rash of school shootings in recent years, including the massacre at Columbine, has renewed
attention to the extent and potential consequences of bullying for both bully and victim.
In a videotape, the young gunmen attributed their acts to retaliation for years of taunting that they said
friends and relatives had inflicted on them because of an unwillingness to dress and act as others
wanted.
Bullies, researchers insist, are not born, they are made. And they can and should be unmade before the behavior becomes so ingrained that it shapes their personalities and behavior for life. In a nationwide survey of 15,686 students in sixth through 10 grade in public and private schools, Dr. Tonja R.
Nansel and colleagues at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development found that
children who bullied and their victims were more likely to engage in violent behaviors than those who
had never been involved in bullying.
They found that children who bully are at risk for engaging in more serious violent acts, like fighting frequently and carrying weapons.
For example, among boys surveyed who said they had bullied others at least once a week in
school, 52.2 percent had carried weapons in the past month, 43.1 percent carried weapons to school, 38.7
percent fought frequently and 45.7 percent reported being injured in fights. The comparable statistics for
boys who had never bullied others in school were 13.4 percent, 7.9 percent, 8.3 percent and 16.2 percent.
The greatest risk for engaging in violence-related acts was found among boys who bullied others when
they were away from school; 70.2 percent of them had carried weapons.
Nor were girls exempt from potentially violent behavior. About 30 percent of girls who had bullied
others in school at least once a week reported carrying weapons.
The victims of bullying were also at risk for violent behavior, with weapons carried by 36 percent
of boys and 15 percent of girls who had been bullied in school at least once a week.
At greatest risk were boys and girls who both bullied others and were bullied themselves; they
were 16 times as likely as youngsters not engaged in bullying behavior to carry weapons, the researchers
reported last April in The Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.
''It appears that bullying is not an isolated behavior, but a sign that children may be involved in
more violent behaviors,'' said Dr. Duane Alexander, director of the child health institute. ''The implication is that children who bully other children may benefit from programs seeking to prevent not just bullying, but other violent behaviors as well.''
Bullying Starts Early
Even preschoolers can be bullies, for example, giving other children insulting nicknames, refusing
to invite particular classmates to birthday parties or excluding certain children from games.
In a study published in November in the journal Child Development, Dr. James Snyder of Wichita
State University and colleagues reported that many kindergarten children found themselves verbally
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and physically abused by their playground peers. By the time the children reached first grade, an increasing amount of harassment had focused on a smaller group of perpetual victims.
In their observations of 266 students through two early grades, the Kansas researchers found
that boys who experienced growing harassment were more likely to demonstrate antisocial and depressive behavior, and girls who were victimized in kindergarten were more likely to engage in antisocial behavior at home as they grew older and became more and more depressed at school if they continued to be
victims.
''Substantial rates of victimizations were observed,'' Dr. Snyder reported. ''On average, children
were targets of peer physical or verbal harassment about once every three to six minutes.''
Another study of bullying among young adolescents, published in Pediatrics last month, emphasized the ''social plight of victims: they are not only targeted by bullies but also ostracized by many of
their classmates.''
''Victims suffer not only emotional distress but also social marginalization (i.e., classmates avoid
them and they have low social status),'' Dr. Jaana Juvonen and colleagues at the University of California, Los Angeles, reported.
This study, unlike others that required children to report on their own bullying actions and instances of being bullied, questioned fellow students of sixth graders from 11 schools to determine the incidence and consequences of bullying and being bullied.
As in previous studies, they found that the most troubled group were those who were both bullies
and victims. These youngsters exhibited the highest levels of social avoidance, conduct problems and
school difficulties.
Furthermore, the researchers said, ''victims who bully others also best fit the profiles of seriously
violent offenders.''
They analyzed 37 intended and actual school shootings and found that about two-thirds of those
responsible had been bullied by their peers.
What Can Be Done?
Parents are advised to ask children about teasing as early as age 5. If a child engages in bullying,
he should be taught to apologize, ask forgiveness and shake hands. Older children who are teased can be
taught not to play the role of victim, either by saying to the bully: ''I don't like your teasing. Stop it,'' or
simply ignoring the bully and walking away.
Children who are bullied should not be blamed for being victims, nor should they be told to fight
back. That can only worsen the problem, encouraging bullies to become increasingly hurtful. It is also
important to boost victims' self-confidence and make sure they take part in activities they enjoy and can
excel at. Also, parents who see bullying should teach their children to stick up for victims whenever possible.
Parents of bullies are advised to take the problem seriously, looking for the causes of anger or
frustration, letting them know that hurtful behavior will not be tolerated, supervising their behavior
more closely, ''punishing'' bullying with positive acts toward others and teaching nonviolent ways of solving problems.
Experts say that schools, communities and parents must collaborate to control bullying. One effective school-based program, covering kindergarten through fifth grade, is called Take a Stand, developed by Dr. Sherryll Kraizer. A set of teaching guides and a training videotape costs $195.
This article appeared in The New York Times January 13, 2004 and can be accessed online at www.nytimes.com.
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Bullying: The Really Big Problem Behind the Really Big Problem
By JONATHAN HEWITT
It's October. The weather is starting to change, we're planning Halloween costumes and starting
to think about the holidays. But October is also now recognized as National Bullying Prevention Month.
On the one hand, I'm thrilled that we are giving this critical issue such focused attention. But on the
other hand, I am deeply saddened that bullying in our nation has reached such epidemic proportions.
We've all seen the heartbreaking and disturbing stories regularly making headlines on the news
and in our local papers. It's way too often that we hear horrifying stories of teens committing suicide as a
result of bullying, like the story a young girl posted about her sister, She was Bullied to death R.I.P.,
which has over 4.3 million views on YouTube. There was even a documentary film entitled Bully released
in U.S. theaters earlier this year. Clearly, the bullying issue is getting the attention it deserves.
And everyone is working really hard to find solutions to the problem. Children and teens have
been surveyed, research has been compiled and programs led by students, school administrators and
bully experts are all attacking the issue. The Department of Education has hosted summits on bullying
prevention and 48 states have now enacted anti-bullying legislation. Even celebrities are doing their part
like Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation.
Yet the statistics are still staggering. According to the CDC, "Current estimates suggest that
nearly 30% of American adolescents reported at least moderate bullying experiences as the bully, the victim, or both." Unfortunately, 83% of these bullying incidents receive no intervention and continue to happen. I could go on and on with these kinds of sobering statistics.
Can the news be any worse? Well, I honestly believe that behind the really complex and pervasive
bullying issue is actually another issue equally as complex and even more widespread. I believe that the
really big problem behind the really big problem is self-bullying.
I have taught anti-bully programs to children and teens for 20 years. I have taught the mental,
emotional, verbal and physical safety skills to prevent and deal with a bully situation. Of course, there is
huge benefit to these kinds of programs, but at some point I realized that it just wasn't enough. I wasn't
addressing the problem behind the problem.
Under the tremendous pressure and influence of peers and media, kids today are bombarded
more than ever with how they should look, how they should act and who they should be. Because no child
can possibly live up to these false standards, it all becomes fertile ground for self-directed negative
thoughts, harsh self-judgments and damaging comparisons. The problem compounds because when children don't know how to deal with their own self-negativity, they look for other ways to alleviate the pain.
Too often a child will try to feel better about himself by putting down someone else. Thus it's a domino
effect and without addressing self-bullying, we will never have a chance of making a big dent in the bullying problem.
Of course, there is no overnight, quick-fix solution, but I am dedicated to attacking the selfbullying problem in two ways. First, we need to help our children build a strong, positive sense of self
from within instead of looking to others for their validation and self-worth. Second, we need to help our
children develop the skills to deal with negative thoughts when they do arise.
So, where do you begin in helping your child? I know that it can all seem overwhelming, but I invite you to take the first step which is awareness. Start with yourself. Become aware of your own selfbullying. Do your children see you judging yourself, comparing yourself to others, putting yourself down?
What are you modeling to your kids? What are your children learning from you? Realize that you don't
have to be perfect. No one is immune from self-bullying, but we all have the ability to learn skills to deal
with it.
Start a conversation with your children about the topic of self-bullying. Without over sharing or
overburdening your child, you can talk about your own experiences with it. You can ask your child to become aware of when they experience self-directed negative thoughts or putting themselves down. I invite
you to air out this topic in your home and let it become something that you and your children can discuss
openly.
Awareness and open conversation are great first steps to address self-bullying with your family.
Stay tuned for a follow-up article when I'll be sharing specific tools to help your child deal with selfbullying thoughts and build a strong, positive sense of self from the inside out.
24
This article appeared in The Huffington Post Online October 4, 2012.
The Beast Within (continued)
Part Three: Yourself
Below is an excerpt from an article which identifies what actually qualifies as bullying. Read
through the excerpt and then honestly reflect on the questions below.
What Is Bullying?
Bullying takes many forms: gossip, snubbing, put-downs, threats, and violent attacks. Its roots lie
in the difference of power between the bullies and their victims. Bullies tend to be confident, impulsive
(acting on the spur of the moment), and popular. Victims tend to be withdrawn and have few friends.
Many bullies come from homes where they are neglected or abused. Bullying allows them to exercise
power that's denied to them at home.
Boys and girls bully differently. Boys tend to use threats and physical violence. Girl bullies rely
more on backbiting (cruel comments), social exclusion, and spreading false rumors. Cyberbullying, a new
form of harassment, allows bullies to humiliate their peers with e-mail and blog postings.
Excerpted from “The Problem with Bullies” by Sean Price.
Originally published in Junior Scholastic February 9, 2004.
Have you experienced any of the things identified in the article? How did it feel?
Why do you think people bully one another? What causes someone to make fun of
someone else?
Look at the passage from Scripture listed below. Contrast the images presented in this verse
with the concept behind bullying.
So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; - Colossians 3:12
25
The Beast Within (continued)
So what? There’s bullying. It’s bad. It will continue to happen? What’s the next step?
Consider the following questions as you contemplate the issue.
What is it that prevents teens (and adults) from treating one another the way we are called
to in Colossians?
How do we not only as individuals, but also as groups recognize bullying behavior? How
can we identify it in ourselves and our friends?
Once identified, what can we do about it?
Is bullying an issue that can be solved? Why or why not?
26
In Other Words…
Today we’re going to look at quotes from various individuals as well as from the text. Your
job is to examine each one by writing down your initial thoughts and reactions and
connections you might make to the novel or something else.
1. “A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they
don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.” - Rosalynn Carter
2. “He found himself understanding the wearisomeness of his life, where every path was an
improvisation and a considerable part of one’s walking life was spent watching one’s
feet.” - William Golding, Lord of the Flies
3. “The statistics say that something like 65% of us will give the wrong answer just because
we heard someone else say it, even if we know it’s the wrong answer. The power of
suggestion is very strong.” - Realhypnosis.com
27
In Other Words… (continued)
4. “All struggles are essentially power struggles, and most are no more intellectual than two
rams knocking their heads together.” - Octavia E. Butler
5. “Society knows perfectly well how to kill a man and has methods more subtle than
death.” - Andre Gide
6. “The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who
think alike than those who think differently.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche
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_____/18
Power and Control, Violence and Acceptance and Fear
In the space below, create a double-entry journal which traces either the boys’ treatment
of Simon from chapters 1-8 or the boys’ treatment of Piggy from chapters 1-11.
- How was each boy treated by individuals and groups (right side examples)
- Do you think this treatment influenced each boys’ death? (left side analysis)
29
Fishbowl Discussion
Today we will be having a fishbowl discussion based on the Novel Essential Questions. You will
have about ten minutes to work in a group and jot down some thoughts and ideas for each
question in the space below. Then, one member from each group will enter the fishbowl to
participate in discussion. Individuals in the fishbowl are expected to participate in the
discussion to earn points, while those of you observing from the outside will take notes on the
next page to earn your points.
Novel Essential Questions:
*What makes an individual powerful?
*How does individual power change in relationships with others?
*Do individuals control groups, or do groups control individuals?
*How does a society maintain order? Are laws necessary?
*How do fear and desire for acceptance influence human behavior?
*What are the implications of this story for contemporary society?
*Does violence create power or control?
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Fishbowl Discussion—Notes
On this page, take some notes on the discussion your classmates are having. Your goal isn’t
just to write down who says what, although some of that could be included. You should try
to include your thoughts, ideas, reactions, and opinions which stem from things your
classmates say. If it’s easier for you, you may utilize a double-entry format, with things people
say in one column and your analysis in the other. These will be reviewed and will count as
participation points for today.
_____/5
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Mock Trial
You will be divided into three groups:
Group Jack: This group will look at the entire time on the island from Jack’s point of
view.
Group Ralph: This group will look at the entire time on the island from Ralph’s point of
view.
Group Judges: This group will act as an audience of judges and will ask questions of
Groups Jack and Ralph and pass judgment on them.
Part One: Considering Point of View
The groups supporting Jack and Ralph should consider the following questions in order to
prepare for questions from the judges:
* What happened?
* What events does each boy have firsthand knowledge of?
* What events did each boy hear about?
* Which actions will each boy defend the most emphatically?
* What will each boy say about the other?
Part Two: Preparing to Make a Judgment
The group acting as judges should prepare questions for both groups. In order to come to a
fair judgment, what do the judges need to find out? How can you look beyond the boys’
personalities and leadership styles to find an accurate depiction of what happened on the
island? You must come up with questions that solicit both objective and subjective answers.
*Objective: Facts with no personal feelings (Jack left the fire to hunt; Ralph gave a list
of rules for boys to follow on the island, etc.)
*Subjective: Opinions; the boys’ personal feelings (Jack was acting arrogantly and
disrespectfully; Ralph didn’t have enough sense to understand why meat was
important, etc.)
The trial itself is intended to determine who is at fault and for what he is to blame. Each team
will have the opportunity to make an opening statement to the judges, explaining the
experience and actions of its client. Following the opening statements, the teams will
respond to questions from the judges. After all questions have been adequately answered,
the judges will meet to come up with their verdict.
All students are expected to actively participate in this activity, both in the preparation and
presentation. Participation points will be awarded to those students who demonstrate ontaskness and active involvement.
32
Part Two:
Power and Control Wheel (PCW)
Respect Wheel (RW)
Character Charts
Point of View Activities
Double-Entry Journal Instructions and Pages
33
34
35
36
Character: Ralph
Character’s Actions
Other Characters’ Reactions Toward the Boy
Character’s Speech
Author’s Descriptions
37
Character: Piggy
Character’s Actions
Other Characters’ Reactions Toward the Boy
Character’s Speech
Author’s Descriptions
38
Character: Jack
Character’s Actions
Other Characters’ Reactions Toward the Boy
Character’s Speech
Author’s Descriptions
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Exploring Other Point of View
Character: _____________________________________________
Point of View (first or third limited): _______________________
Chapter and pages: ____________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
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______________________________________________________________________________
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Score: ______/6
40
Exploring Other Point of View
Character: _____________________________________________
Point of View (first or third limited): _______________________
Chapter and pages: ____________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
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Score: ______/6
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Exploring Other Point of View
Character: _____________________________________________
Point of View (first or third limited): _______________________
Chapter and pages: ____________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
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Score: ______/6
42
Double Entry Journals
You will be asked to complete a double-entry journal for one of your reading assignments
(chapters 5-8). Below is a list of possible things you could include in that double-entry journal.
There really is no correct way to do this activity, provided the information in the right column
demonstrates thoughtful analysis and effort on your part.
When asked, you will complete these journals in your ISN. I will provide you with an additional
copy of the chart below for you to paste into the note side of your ISN and you will complete the
journal activity on the left page.
Below are several, but by no means all, ways to use a DOUBLE-ENTRY JOURNAL.
Left-Hand Side
Right-Hand Side
Quote from the text
Visual commentary (drawings, visual analogies,
doodles)
Quote from the text
Reactions (“This bugs, annoys, moves . . . me
because . . .”), reflections (”I wonder if. . .”),
musings (“Hmmm…”), questions (“I wonder
why…”) with possible answers (“Maybe because .
. .”)
Quote from the text
Connections
Text to other text(s)—print, visual, oral
Text to self
Text to world
Quote from text
Significance in relation to piece as a whole;
relating part to whole.
Quote from text
Social Questions (Race, class, gender issues)
Quote from text
Naming Literary Techniques
Quote from text
Imitations or parodies of text’s content or style.
Quotes from text
In generating ideas for a paper, relating passages
to your thesis.
43
Part Three:
Chapter Comprehension Questions
These questions should be completed with each
reading assignment.
See the schedule in the front of this packet for due
dates.
44
45
Chapter One
Why is it important that the boys got to the island after an “attack”?
What are the main concerns of “the fat boy” and “the fair boy”?
Why is “the fat boy” proud that he has asthma?
What do the boys think they should make?
What doesn’t “the fat boy” want to be called?
What does Ralph’s dad do for a living?
Who is going to rescue them?
What do the boys use as a symbol of authority in the society they form?
What prevents Piggy from being the natural leader?
What happens when Ralph blows on the conch?
How do the boys know to sit down?
Describe the scene when Jack emerges with the choir.
Why does Piggy want Ralph to be in charge?
Describe the power struggle between Jack and Ralph when they are choosing a chief.
46
Chapter One (continued)
How does Ralph win?
Why does Ralph respect Jack more than Piggy?
Who are the hunters and what are their jobs?
What is Piggy’s job?
What do Ralph and Simon think they should do as they explore the island?
Why does Jack hesitate when he lifts his knife to kill the piglet?
_____/20
Chapter Two
What are the differences between the first and second meeting?
Why does Jack say they need hunters?
What is the first rule that Ralph makes?
What does a little one think he has seen in the forest? What is Jack’s response? What is
Ralph’s response?
What differences are shown between Piggy and Jack when Ralph speaks about his father
and the Queen?
Why do the boys want to make a fire?
47
Chapter Two (continued)
How do they light the fire?
Why do the rules change on the top of the mountain?
What is Ralph more concerned about, smoke or fire? Why?
What does it mean if the conch is present?
What does Jack decide the hunters will be responsible for other than hunting?
What does Piggy say they need during his speech?
Why don’t the boys listen to Piggy?
Why does Ralph get mad at Piggy?
Who is missing?
What does the fire symbolize?
_____/20
Chapter Three
What does the description of Jack at the start of the chapter reveal about his character?
Who is building the shelters?
What does this reveal about Simon’s character?
Why is Ralph so angry?
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Chapter Three (continued)
Why does Jack say that the hunters are excused from building shelters?
Although Ralph criticized the boys, do you think he is responsible for their lack of cooperation and performance? Why or why not?
Have the hunters killed anything yet?
What is the most important thing?
What would Jack like to do before this happens?
What does the final description of Simon reveal about him?
_____/11
Chapter Four
What were the smaller boys known as?
Who are littleuns in a modern society?
What is the conch linked with?
Who is Henry?
What do Maurice and Roger do to the castles?
Why does Maurice run away?
Why does Henry get excited when he is in control of living things?
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Chapter Four (continued)
Why does Roger throw the stones near the littleun instead of directly at him?
Jack compares hunting to war. Are these things comparable?
What will Jack’s painted face allow him to do?
What is the boys’ response when they see smoke in the distance?
Why does the boys’ plan for rescue fail?
What caused the hunters, who had promised to keep the fire burning, to neglect it?
Even if the boys hate Piggy, why do they still need him?
What does Jack have memories of?
What does Jack do when Piggy confronts him?
What does this reveal about Jack?
Does Ralph surrender to Jack by eating the meat?
Is Simon more “pure” than Ralph? Is this important?
How does Ralph restore order on the island?
_____/20
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Chapter Five
What does Ralph need to think about at the start of the chapter?
What must the meeting not be?
Describe the assembly place.
What was the trouble with being chief?
What is Piggy better at than Ralph?
What did they decide about the water?
Why can’t they deviate from the plan?
Why is one of the shelters not build as strongly as the others?
What is the most important thing on the island to Ralph?
Compare Jack and Piggy’s perceptions of the beast.
What does Maurice trying to make the littleuns laugh reveal about him?
Where do the littleuns think the beast comes from?
What does Simon think about the beast?
Why doesn’t Jack think Ralph is a good leader?
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Chapter Five (continued)
What is Ralph’s reasoning for him being chief?
Why can’t Jack hurt Ralph?
_____/16
Chapter Six
What does the wind carry to the top of the mountain?
Why were the twins sleeping at the same time?
What are the twins relieved about?
What do the boys think they see?
Why do Ralph and Jack decide to go find the beast?
Why is Piggy left behind?
Why is this more than a hunter’s job?
Why doesn’t Ralph expect to meet a beast?
Why couldn’t Jack let Ralph go up the mountain alone?
Is Jack more worried about the beast or envious of Ralph?
Why does Ralph insist they go to the mountain?
_____/11
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Chapter Seven
What would Ralph like to do?
Why is the meal now an “easy meal?” How is this different from previous meals?
What is Simon trying to tell Ralph when he says, “You’ll get back to where you came from”?
Why is the chief becoming more important than the hunter?
Why is Ralph angry about the books he’s read?
How does Ralph react when the boar comes charging down the path?
How do the boys react to Ralph’s actions?
What does this scene reveal about Ralph?
What does Jack want to use instead of a pig in their circle dance?
Why does Jack become so angry when Ralph shows he is worried about Piggy?
Why does Jack insist on going to the mountain?
Why does Ralph go with him?
Who goes with them? Why?
What do the boys see at the top of the mountain?
_____/14
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Chapter Eight
How does Ralph describe the beast?
What does this do to the rest of the group?
Why does Jack scream that Ralph thinks his hunters are no good?
Although he is not able to get the boys to vote Ralph out of office as chief, Jack manages
to overthrow Ralph’s authority anyway. How does he do this?
Piggy says, “Now we’ve really got a beast.” Who is he talking about?
What is the problem with Piggy and Ralph’s plan?
Where did all the older boys go? Why?
How is Jack elected chief?
What is different about this hunt, compared to those described in the past?
What problem does Roger think of?
Describe Simon’s strange encounter with the Lord of the Flies.
Who or what is the Lord of the Flies?
What is Ralph scared of?
What is the Lord of the Flies’ warning?
_____/14
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Chapter Nine
What happens to Simon's nose?
What is meant by "What else is there to do"?
What did Simon see at the top of the mountain?
What does Simon realize?
What does he decide he must do?
What does Ralph suggest?
What question does Jack ask that threatens Ralph's role?
How does Jack embarrass Ralph?
What kind of leader is Jack?
What happens to Simon's body as it goes out to sea? (Read these last couple of pages very
carefully)
_____/10
Chapter Ten
Why is Ralph limping, one eye a slit, scab on leg?
Why does Ralph laugh at Piggy's suggestion that they call an assembly?
What does Piggy think they should pretend?
What is going to happen to Wilfred?
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Chapter Ten
What did Stanley almost say?
Why was fire important?
What does Eric say which shocks Ralph?
What does Ralph think the noise outside is?
When a voice calls from the jungle, what does it say?
Describe the attack: who was attacking? what did they want and/or take
How does Jack account for the death of Simon?
_____/11
Chapter Eleven
How is Piggy blinded?
Where are Ralph and Piggy going to go?
How does Piggy assert himself?
What does Ralph want to do to their physical appearance but cannot?
Regarding the quote, "They passed the place where...," why do they shy away in silence?
What does Ralph do to attract the boys' attention?
What does Ralph tell Piggy to do?
56
Chapter Ten (continued)
Why do Ralph and Jack begin to fight and who starts it?
Piggy reminds Ralph what they came for. What is it?
Why does Ralph lose his temper?
What happens when Piggy tries to use intelligence to reason with the kids?
What is the reaction of Jack's tribe's to Ralph's talk of rescue?
_____/12
Chapter Twelve
Where is Ralph?
What does he look like?
What does Ralph feel has happened to the boys?
Why does Ralph figure he is an outcast?
What advice does Samneric give Ralph?
What is going to happen to Ralph?
Why did Ralph plan to sleep near Castle Rock?
How is Jack's tribe trying to get rid of Ralph?
What does Ralph do to one of the boys?
57
Chapter Twelve (continued)
What had the tribe done?
How does Ralph think he can escape?
What had Ralph "heard before"?
What does Ralph see when he staggers to his feet?
What are the most significant events at the end of the chapter?
_____/14
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Part Four:
Multi-Genre Research Project
This project will be discussed in class in more detail, but
this section contains the overview, rubric, and specific
details for the project.
See the schedule at the front of this packet for information on in-class work days and due dates.
59
Multi-Genre Research Project
In lieu of a traditional research paper, students will be completing a Multi-Genre Research
Project. Samples will be provided in class.
Multi-Genre Rubric
I. Prologue: 1-3 paragraphs that explain your intent for this project. The thesis statement
should be included, as well as any directions on how the project should be viewed.
II. Genres: This should include evidence to back up your thesis statement, and should
include all of the following components:
- 6-8 pages in length
- 6 genres minimum including:
* A 2-3 page research-based essay
* Character PEE letter (crafted as part of an assignment in class)
* 4 additional genres of your choosing
* no more than 2 can be visual art
* Shorter genres such as the 6 word memoir need to include 5 items to make
up the one genre
- 3 quotes imbedded into your genres.
- Demonstrate thoughtful analysis of the themes of power and control and how
people can be affected by each
III. Note Page: This section should provide an explanation for each of the pieces included,
as well as any further clarification as to what is fact and what is your interpretation of the
materials
- 1-2 paragraphs per genre
- Minimum of 6 quotes from at least 3 different sources. The novel can count as one
source. You can also explain the original 3 quotes imbedded in your genres.
IV. Bibliography: In MLA format
- Minimum of three sources need to be included
Rubric:
Section #
I
II
III
IV
All Items
Included in
Correct
Style and
Structure
7
22
12
6
Thesis &
Evidence
Articulated
Well
8
40
21
na
Spelling &
Grammar
Have Few
to No
Errors
5
16
9
2
60
Readability,
Organization,
& Neatness
Creativity &
Attractiveness
Total
Points
5
16
9
2
5
16
9
na
30
110
60
10
Multi-Genre Research Project Genre Ideas
Here is a list of genre ideas. If you have other genres you would like to explore, please see
me ASAP.
1. Poetry (average length 25 lines)
a. Free Verse
b. Sonnet
c. Acrostic
d. ABCedarian
e. Haiku (5 = 1 completed genre)
2. Short Story
3. Prose
4. Narrative/Creative Non-Fiction
5. Conversation
6. Play
7. Pamphlet
8. Advertisement (video, radio, or picture)
9. Songs (original, not someone else’s work)
10. Journal
11. Epitaph (5 = 1 completed genre)
12. Letter
13. 6 word memoir (5 = 1 completed genre)
14. Cooking ingredients and directions
15. Detailed Scene or Setting
16. How to… directions
17. Newspaper article
a. Front page story
c. Opinion
d. Religion
g. Arts & Leisure
h. Forecast
i. Letter to the Editor
j. Want Ads (jobs, personals, selling/buying items etc.—5 = 1 completed genre)
18. Resume
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Multi-Genre Research Project—Essay
General Information
The essay portion of this project will need to be two to three typed, double-spaced pages
which thoughtfully incorporate outside research (books, newspaper articles, websites, interviews, etc.) and your own analysis into a skillfully crafted essay.
Your general topic for this essay will be bullying, but the narrowed angle you examine is up
to you. We will spend some time in class brainstorming some possible options for this.
You will need to research your narrowed topic, taking notes and being sure to record source
information for your bibliography. You may use websites, but newspaper articles are recommended. Be sure that the sources you use are academic (i.e. not personal blogs). Be aware
of any bias as you read the information.
As this is academic writing, your essay should be constructed in third person (no “I,” “you,”
“we,” etc.), be void of contractions, and be formal in style and tone.
Structure
Your essay should begin with an opening paragraph which broadly addresses your topic,
narrowing to the thesis statement—the one sentence in your paper which explains exactly
what you’re going to be proving. Think topic sentence, but for the whole paper.
Your essay should follow a structured format and development. Think of the box charts you
used for your paragraphs—extend one of those to create the essay. Each of the boxes in the
top row would serve as the main idea for a paragraph, and the two boxes under each
would become the supporting points for that paragraph. You need to PEE in your essay just
as thoroughly as you did in your paragraphs. Each paragraph should still have a topic sentence and that topic sentence should directly relate back to the thesis statement.
Your paper should end with a concluding paragraph that follows the opposite structure of
your opening paragraph—a rephrasing (not restatement) of your thesis, broadening to a
general comment on the topic.
We will spend minimal time in class reviewing this, however I’m happy to work with students
before or after school who would like additional help.
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PEE Letter (Point, Evidence, Explanation)
In a format you should be familiar with, you will be writing a PEE letter to one character that
you feel strongly about. In your letter, assess the character’s behavior by describing his
actions and analyzing his motivations and intentions. Use the activities and discussions
we’ve done throughout the unit as well as the PCW and your own thoughts.
Be sure to follow this format for your letter:
*Paragraph One: Introduce yourself to the character and give your purpose for writing
the letter (not, “I have to do this for a homework assignment,” but what is the
intended purpose of the letter)
*Paragraphs Two—Four: Describe what you understand about his actions using
specific details from the story. These paragraphs should be very detailed and include
examples from the text, supported and developed with your connections and
explanations.
Paragraph Five: Explain your assessment by making recommendations to the
character.
This letter, upon completion, will be used as one of the elements of your
Multi-Genre Research Project.
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