England Book Club: The Wind in the Willows – part 3
This week we’ll read the next two chapters of The Wind in the Willows (Chapter 5 – Dulce Domum and Chapter 6 – Mr. Toad).
In chapter 5, Mole returns to his home after being away for quite some time. At the beginning of the book, Mole called his home “duty and boredom,” but now, as the chapter title says, he calls it Sweet Home. (In Latin, Dulce means sweet and Domum means home).
In chapter 6, we get to know Mr. Toad a great deal better. Remember, Mr. Toad is a character than Book Magazine ranked as the 38th best character in the history of literature, so there’s definitely something about him that’s meant to stand out from Mole, Rat, or Mr. Badger.
Japan Book Club: Hiroshima – part 3
Chapter three of Hiroshima is called Details are Being Investigated, and in this chapter John Hersey goes into intense detail to describe the suffering taking place in Hiroshima.
Once again, the story follows the same six survivors – some of them hanging on as best they can, and others doing everything they can to help other people.
However, what seems to be missing is any help from the Japanese government or military. At one point in the chapter, a naval ship makes announcements as it traverses the river, letting people know that help is on its way. It never seems to come, but the hope of help arriving soon appears to help some people.
The chapter ends with a speech to the people by the Japanese emperor.
What did the Japanese government do to help the people in Hiroshima in the days following the bombing? Did they do enough? What could they have done? Finally, some people say the Americans went to far by dropping “the bomb,” but others say that the Japanese government allowed horrible things to happen to the people by refusing to surrender and end the war. Who do you think is to blame? Why?
England Book Club: The Wind in the Willows – part 2
This week we’ll read the next two chapters of The Wind in the Willows (Chapter 3 – The Wild Wood and Chapter 4 – Mr. Badger).
This week we’ll read the next two chapters of The Wind in the Willows (Chapter 3 – The Wild Wood and Chapter 4 – Mr. Badger).
In chapter 3, Mole explores the Wild Wood on his own, getting quite lost and becoming more and more frightened. A winter storm (hey, we know about those around here) makes it nearly impossible for him to find his way home. The most important part of this chapter is the feelings that Mole feels while lost – and the feelings the author tries to make you feel while reading about Mole. Those feelings are called the story’s mood.
In Chapter 4, we meet the fourth of the main characters of the story – Mr. Badger. Rat has repeatedly warned Mole that Mr. Badger does not like guests, especially un-announced or uninvited ones.
England Book Club: The Wind in the Willows – part 1
In June of 2013, we’ll be heading to England for TAP’s 7th educational adventure. That’s still 522 days away, but you’ll be surprised how quickly that time goes by, and there’s tons to learn before we get on that plane to London.
Each of our meetings will cover all the important stuff that we want to know before we start exploring England and Wales – stuff like history, art, music, culture, architecture, and literature. On top of all that educational stuff, we’ll also talk about surviving long distance travel, discussing passports, airports, foreign money, cell phones, and suitcases.
We’re going to put you to work outside of those meetings too. Each week (all 75 of them) that you’re a part of the program, we have an online book club. The TAP teachers have selected some incredible books for us to read and discuss as a group. Each of these books relates to the things you’ll see and experience in England and will make your trip better.
Each week we’ll assign a small section of a book to read, then ask you to visit our website. On minnokatap.com, there will be a weekly set of questions to discuss. Some will be simple, some will need deeper thought, some might require you to do a little research, but all will help you understand the book and the trip better. With each assignment, you’ll be asked to answer the questions right there on our website – in the comments section – then return a few days later to respond to what the other students have said. In total, each assignment is worth 5 points – 3 points for your answer and 2 points for replying to other kids (so reply to at least two of them). If you want to reply more – awesome – the better and longer conversation we can get going, the better it will be for all of us. Read more…
Japan Book Club: Hiroshima – part 2
Chapter one of Hiroshima gave us a look at six different individuals as they began their day, a day that would change the world. This week we’ll read chapter two. In this part of the book, it shows how the survivors react to what has happened.
Most of them are unable to comprehend the bombing, since the “all clear” signal had been given, they hadn’t heard multiple bomber planes in the air, and they had no idea that just one bomb could have caused this much destruction.
This week, pay attention to what the six characters in the book are doing. In just a few sentences for each character, tell us what they do in the moments/hours after the bomb drops.
Japan Book Club: Hiroshima – part 1
At 8:15 am on August 6th, 1945, an American bomber, The Enola Gay, dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on a city in Southern Japan. In that city, Hiroshima, on the day of the bombing and in the days and weeks that followed, over 100,000 people died.
A few years later, John Hersey, a journalist/novelist, decided to tell the story of six people that did survive the blast. In Hiroshima, Hersey follows six individuals, telling you what they saw and felt in Hiroshima that day and the days that followed.
This week we’re going to read chapter 1 – A Noiseless Flash. The story starts with all six people going about their days the moments before the bomb explodes. You see a young doctor arriving at his hospital, an older doctor sitting on his porch, a priest starting his day, a soldier’s widow getting her children ready, a reverend helping a friend, and a young woman arriving at work. All of them starting what looked to be a typical day, but it would soon be a day that changed their worlds forever.
While you read, pay careful attention to characters. The questions we want you to answer this week is “why does the author begin the story the way he does? Why does he follow six Japanese people around for the hours before the bombing? Why doesn’t he begin with the pilot flying the plane, or the men who created the bomb, or the president making the decision to use such a devastating weapon? Why doesn’t he start when the bomb goes off or the day after?” Read more…
Japan Book Club: Bushido: The Soul of Japan – Part 7 (the last part)
As the year comes to a close, let’s also finish up Bushido: Soul of Japan. Hopefully when you’re finished with the book, you”ll be able to see how ancient ideals continue to impact Japanese society today, influence the rest of the world, and will be evident in the things we do and experience while we’re in Japan.
This week we’ll focus on the last three chapters of the book: Influence of Bushido, Is Bushido Still Alive?, and The Future of Bushido.
Read the chapters and answer the questions below.
Japan Book Club: Bushido: The Soul of Japan – Part 6
It’s been a little while since we’ve been able to post questions for the Japan Book Club, with all the TAP teachers busy with fund raisers, England applications, band concerts, drama club, cheerleading competitions, and the volleyball season, but we’re hoping to finish Bushido: Soul of Japan over winter break, so curl up next to that fire and get some reading done while you wait for Santa to plop down that chimney.
This week we’ll focus on three chapters: Institution of Suicide and Redress, The Sword the Soul of the Samurai, and The Training and Position of Women.
Read the chapters and answer the questions below.
Drop and Shop
Everyone needs a little more time to get their holiday shopping done, right?
Minooka TAP to the rescue. This Saturday, December 17th – from 9am til 5pm. Minooka TAP will supply the babysitters so moms and dads in the Minooka and Channahon area can get their shopping done without the rugrats in tow. Drop your kids off at Minooka Intermediate School – 321 W. McEvilly in Minooka.
We’ll provide experienced babysitters in the form of our 8th grade students, their parents, and the TAP teachers.
We’ll provide the activities – arts/crafts, board games, open gym, movie time, and much more.
You just go and get your Santa on and we’ll take care of the kids. TAP just asks for a $5 donation to our program per child/per hour, or whatever you feel is appropriate.
All money raised goes to pay for the expenses our 8th graders will incur during their trip to Japan this June.
TAP will not provide meals or snacks due to allergy concerns, but you may bring your own with the kids.
If you have any questions, please email us at MinookaTAPfundraising@gmail.com
The Most Memorable Thing I Ever Ate
Fresh vegetable stand in Granada, Spain
I like food.
I know that seems like a ridiculous statement that is almost as obvious as, “I really enjoy breathing” or “You know what I like, having my heart continue to beat.” But I really like food, and not just in a staying alive sort of way. I love trying new foods. I love exploring new recipes. I love experiencing something unusual or different.
Even before we started Minooka TAP and began exploring the world, I enjoyed traveling. I was lucky enough to travel all over the United States, and way before shows like Man vs Food and Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives I did my best to find the best food in each city I visited. Now I’m not talking about some fancy restaurant with white table clothes and snooty waiters and gazillion dollar steaks – I’m talking about the really good food.
About twelve years ago I worked with a guy who had lived his whole life in New York. One afternoon we went to Portillo’s for lunch, and he told me that he’d never had an Italian beef sandwich before. I never knew that Italian beef was something you could only get around Chicagoland. Of course Chicago style pizza and Chicago style hot dogs were ours, but Italian beef – didn’t that belong to… well… the Italians? It turns out, nope. It was invented here, and isn’t easy to get anywhere outside of Chicagoland. It then became my mission to find the “Italian beef” in every place that I visit. Now, I don’t mean actually find their Italian beef since they don’t have it, but find that awesome local taste treat everywhere I went. I was Guy Fieri before Guy Fieri – only I didn’t have the spikey blond hair and ridiculous jokes… wait a second… Hey, I think Guy owes me some credit here.
That summer I started traveling the U.S. to eat, and in the next few years I had New York pizza and deli sandwiches, Memphis barbeque, fried ravioli in St. Louis, and pork tenderloin sandwiches in Indiana. I had a sandwich called a Hot Brown in Louisville, chocolatey chilli in Cincinnati, and stopped at a place called Primanti Brothers to have a fantastic ham, coleslaw, and french fry sandwich in Pittsburgh. Avoiding the McDonald’s, Chili’s, and Pizza Huts that a lot of travelers stop at just added a whole new dimension to my travels.
So, when we started traveling the globe with TAP, one of the first rule we made was to avoid all those standard American chain restaurants (yes, you’ll see McDonald’s everywhere you go) and experience the real food. Of course, sometimes we have to step outside our comfort zones and try something different, unusual, or just plain weird, but sometime you wind up with something incredible. I thought I’d take the time today to share the most memorable thing I’ve eaten on each of our trips. Read more…
Minooka TAP 