Tag Archives: PBL

Real Life and Real Artwork

Posted on May 26, 2021 by Dan Ennis

As we read Brandon Taylor’s “Real Life” and explored the complexities and challenges that Wallace endures, we were inspired to create. Below you will find a culmination of the most important moments from the text in a visual format that … Continue reading →

Posted in #BrandonTaylor, #PBL #StudentCentered, 2020 Booker Short List novels, Place-Based Learning | Tagged #reallife, Booker Prize Shortlist Novels, Brandon Taylor, PBL | Leave a comment

The Secret War of Independence

Posted on May 26, 2021 by mileshenle

Near the beginning of The Shadow King, Aster is presented as this sort of mean stepmother, who uses Hirut as an outlet for her anger that should be directed towards her husband, Kidane. As readers, we learn that Hirut was … Continue reading →

Posted in #PBL #StudentCentered, #PennPBL, 2020 Booker Short List novels, One Pager, Project-Based Learning, Women's History | Tagged Booker Prize Shortlist Novels, Maaza Mengiste, PBL, TheShadowKing | Leave a comment

Diane Cook’s Fan Club: A First Look into The New Wilderness

Posted on March 4, 2021 by 21pjh

As a group, we had collectively been extremely interested in doing a podcast. We were able to come together and discuss about something we are interested in with no pressure and complete freedom regarding what we talked about. We discussed the themes of power and leadership in the novel along … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, Literature Circles aka #litcircles | Tagged Diane Cook, Lit Circles, PBL, The New Wilderness | 3 Comments

A PBL Take: Final Thoughts on Diane Cooke’s New Wilderness

Posted on March 2, 2021 by 21mjk

Cooke’s well-developed prose drew us in from the beginning of the novel. The vivid descriptions of the nature and setting in which the characters live and battle for survival added richness to the plot and demonstrated the severity of the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, Uncategorized | Tagged Diane Cook, Lit Circles, PBL, The New Wilderness | 11 Comments

The New Wilderness: Parallels to our Climate Crisis

Posted on February 18, 2021 by 21mjk

Diane Cook’s dystopian novel has trail blazed its own genre that is becoming increasingly relevant in our daily lives: climate change fiction, or cli-fi. With carbon emissions becoming a global problem as well as the diminishing presence of nonrenewable energy, … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, English IV Honors, Literature Circles aka #litcircles | Tagged Diane Cook, Lit Circles, PBL, The New Wilderness | Leave a comment

Keeping it Real

Posted on February 16, 2021 by daviswarren2

Brandon Taylor’s Real Life tells the story of Wallace, a young, gay, black student studying in the rural Midwest. Despite his best efforts to distance himself and keep his personal life hidden, Wallace faces racism, drama and toxicity in the workspace. This coming-of-age novel illustrates Wallace’s fight with society’s standards, along with his internal fight as a young man who … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, English IV Honors, Literature Circles aka #litcircles | Tagged #reallife, Brandon Taylor, Lit Circles, PBL | Leave a comment

Assault on the Black Female in This Mournable Body- Reagan Russell and Max Santopietro

Posted on February 15, 2021 by msantopietro

In this novel Mournable Body, assault on the black female body is a reoccurring theme. So far in the novel, there have been two different physical attacks on two different women. The first woman to be attacked is Gertrude, one of Tambudzai’s hostel mates. She is described … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, English IV Honors, Feminism, Literature Circles aka #litcircles, Project-Based Learning | Tagged Lit Circles, PBL, this mournable body, Tsitsi Dangarembga | Leave a comment

The Unique Perspectives of Maaza Mengiste in The Shadow King

Posted on February 11, 2021 by 21wschmitz

The Shadow King tells a story of WWII struggle from two unique perspectives: that of Ethiopian history as well as women’s part in it. In my experience, classroom lessons about WWII are usually Eurocentric and ignore the conflict’s effects on the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, English IV Honors, Literature Circles aka #litcircles | Tagged Lit Circles, Maaza Mengiste, PBL, TheShadowKing | Leave a comment

This Mournable Body; Coming of Age in the face of Racism and Sexism

Posted on December 17, 2020 by msantopietro

In This Mournable Body, Dangarembgaan essential member of society who has the “courage to say the truth about the way things are” while also illuminating the truth that things do not “have to be this way”. We can’t wait to … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020 Booker Short List novels, English IV Honors, Literature Circles aka #litcircles | Tagged Lit Circles, PBL, this mournable body, Tsitsi Dangarembga | Leave a comment

Maaza Mengiste and her “lyrical song of war”

Posted on December 15, 2020 by Dan Ennis

Throughout history, certain narratives – especially those pertaining to women and minority groups – have largely remain unseen and unexplored by literature. Synthesizing a compelling narrative through extensive research with impeccable writing, Maaza Mengiste combines gripping story about war – described as a “lyrical song of war” by Namwali Serpell of the New York Times – and a moving account of … Continue reading →