LA We have completed Whales on Stilts and will be organizing our thoughts for the persuasive letter to MT Anderson, next week. The students worked through all of the character archetypes for the hero's journey. We sent our thoughts to MT Anderson and are awaiting his response. Below is the chain of email messages. The last email is from our class. It was written by the students. On February 2, 2016 at 10:37 AM Joy Fasshauer <[email protected]> wrote: Hello Mr. Anderson, This year I am teaching the hero's journey along with Whales on Stilts. The students are having a hearty and enlightening debate about which characters fill the archetypes of the anti-hero and the mentor. I know what I think, but they really want to know what you think. Is it possible for you to shed some light on the topic? Thank you, Joy Aragones Date: Wed, 3 Feb 2016 13:11:30 -0500 From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: Re: Question for Whales on Stilts Dear Ms. Aragones: Hmmmm.... This is a tough one, because I'm not sure that there's a mentor ... Except, oddly, perhaps the narrator. Even though the narrator doesn't speak to the characters, he hovers around them and teaches the reader about the characters and their world -- far more than your usual narrator does. (He is, in a way, a character, with his own voice and memories and life that are not like mine! I have not had as many friends who are wolves.) I don't remember Joseph Campbell's description of the Hero's Journey well enough to recall the role of the anti-hero exactly. Because Larry, the Whale-Human Hybrid, is obviously the antagonist, but I don't think that's what you mean by anti-hero. He is kind of an anti-hero, too, in that he is oddly sympathetic (what with people making fun of him as a small whale/human hybrid) and that, in the end, he even comes around and falls in love. Does this help? Tell the class that I would love to hear their thoughts! Because I clearly don't know the answers! Yours, M. T. Anderson Our response, sent Thursday, February 18, 2016 Dear Mr. Anderson, We appreciate your assessment of the archetypes in your book. Thank you for taking the time to write to us. We know you are probably busy writing a book like Frogs in Helicopters. Lily and Larry are the most obvious assignments. Below are our thoughts on the other archetypes. Katie is the mentor. She helps Lily discover who she really is, that she has her own story. She is not a shy, ordinary, boring girl, but a hero. We do not think the narrator is the mentor. He does not talk to Lily or help her to improve herself, which is the role of the mentor. We think the narrator has his own role, strictly as the narrator. If we could combine the two, we could call it the naracter. Some of the class believes that there is no anti-hero. Others agree with you that it is Larry. He does not have the qualities of a hero during the story, but seems to gain them at the end of the book, or no one would want to marry him. Jasper is the loyal companion. He is willing to face danger with Lily and he protects her. For example, he goes undercover as a copy repairman at a mad scientist's lair. Also, he helps them escape using his "Bulletmobile". While the whales were attacking, he went to find Larry. The damsel in distress is Grandma. She is rescued by the hero, Lily, as the whales are attacking Decentville. The evil minions are the whales and goons. The whales are inhuman and the need to be defeated through a cunning plan. The goons weaken Lily's ability to get information from the copy machine when they chase them out of the building and while in the Subaru. We are excited to get started on our persuasive letter to you. We loved reading Whales on Stilts! Best, Roycemore - grade 4 Math We are rolling right along learning all about fractions. Some of the topics we covered this week are unit fractions, equivalent fractions, fractions that add up to 1. The students are working with a partner in another math group to complete a fractions activity where they own a bakery. Ask them about it! Science We have been looking at problems that need solving and defining different types of energy. They created a circuit in small groups. Next week we will conduct more experiments with circuits and electricity. JA Next week is our last week with Junior Achievement. On March 8 we will be walking to the bank where our mentor is a manager. She will give the kids a tour of the bank and has asked several entrepreneurs to speak with the students. We will be leaving after lunch. There is no charge for this trip.
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