Poulter Pages

“He wished that somehow he could always stay part eagle in his mind.  How could he remember to stay strong and proud, seeing everything in life differently from a distance?  As Cole sat staring at the flames, it began to drizzle, and finally he got up and went inside the cabin.  The dance had helpled to ease the stiff pain in his hip and arm.  When he fell asleep that night, he slept hard and dreamed of soaring high.”  Chapter 21

What does Cole mean when he says he wants to see everything in life from a distance?  What advantages might one have by doing so?  If you can, give an example of a time in your life when it was helpful to be able to see things from a distance.

Check out the link labeled “Movie Review.”  There you will find Roger Ebert’s review of the movie Iron Man. 

Now write your own review of the movie Spirit Bear: The Simon Jackson Story.  Tell us your favorite and least favorite parts of the movie.  Which actors/actresses did you think did the best job?  The worst job?  Do you think the changes the producer made to the real Simon Jackson Story were justified?  Support your responses with details from the movie. 

Write a summary for one of the chapters above, then give your chapter a title.

Now write your own metaphor for life.  Complete the thought “Life is a/an ________________,” then explain your answer.  You may NOT use a cake or a box of chocolates.

In Chapter 3, Garvey compares life to a cake.  Not all of the ingredients “taste good,” but when they are all baked together, they make something wonderful.  Some of the ingredients in Cole’s cake (or life) are hard for him to swallow.  In this chapter the author uses foreshadowing and metaphor to indicate that some of the hard times Cole has been through are going to make him a better person when they are combined with future experiences.  What are some of the ingredients in your life that have been hard to go through, but might make you a better person in the future?  What are some of the ingredients in your cake?

Please create a Title for Chapter 2, then write a brief summary.  Be sure to include information from the beginning, middle and end of the chapter as well as the most important events.

Legend has it that Ernest Hemingway was once challenged to write a short story in 6 words.  His response was this:  “For sale:  baby shoes, never worn.”

In 2006, the editors of Smith magazine asked readers to describe their own lives in exactly six words.  Since then, a collection of these responses, Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure, has been published.  Here are some examples taken from the Smith Magazine website:

Wish I’d had a different mother.

                                                Lisa Hendrix

Wasted many days worrying about tomorrow.

                                                Joseph Vega

Quietly left a few footprints behind.

                                                Sara Sitar

Yesterday’s weather does not concern me.

                                                tkjell

Turns out that God was right.

                                                Eliza Jo

Here are some examples of celebrity responses from the book:

Fifteen years since last professional haircut.

                                                Dave Eggers

Couldn’t cope so I wrote songs.

                                                Aimee Mann

Well I thought it was funny.

                                                Stephen Colbert

Provide your new classmates a tiny window into your own life by posting a six word memoir. 

This summer we will be reading the novel Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen.  Check out the links on our Blogroll for a preview!